Earthshine
by The.Teal.Rose
Summary: Set during New Moon, Edward is conflicted over having to leave Bella. But then he happens across someone who immediately surprises him with her energy and liveliness. A friendship develops and she begins inspiring him to accept all that he is, which leads him to question his feelings for Bella. "When you lose your heart, you should also find your soul. And we all have one."
1. First Impression

**A/N: **Trying my hand at a Twilight fic. This story starts during the summer before the events of New Moon. It will feature an OC main that will become the eventual love interest of Edward. Sorry to anyone who supports he and Bella but I believe he deserved better. Let me know what you think. Opinions and thoughts are always welcome. Please let me know what you think of the OC too! I love the feedback and appreciate any insight that can be offered : ) The story will be primarily from his perspective, though I might add a few excerpts from Vitalia's POV.

***Vitalia** (name meaning) – _full of life._

***Earthshine** - _a soft, faint glow on the shadowed part of the moon caused by the reflection of sunlight from the Earth._

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the setting or characters from the Twilight saga. They all belong entirely to Stephanie Meyer. I merely borrow for the purpose of creativity ;) I've also used a few references for Edward's experiences in New Moon from PA Lassiter, the brilliant author who wrote the entire saga from his point of view. Vitalia and her family are mine though, so please ask if you are interested in using any of them ;)

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><p><strong>Earthshine<strong>

Chapter 1

"First Impression"

…

"_His face contained for me all possibilities of fierceness and sweetness, pride and submissiveness, violence, self-containment. I never saw more in it than I had when I saw it first, because I saw everything then. The whole thing in him that I was going to love, and never catch or explain."_

_-Alice Munro_

…

[**Edward**]

Just another day within the many glorious and countless that I'd spent with Bella this summer. The season was almost over, and the thought of what I would soon have to do lingered ever presently in the back of my mind.

But I ignored it. I couldn't bear to think on it. Every second with her was precious, and I committed it all to memory. That would be my only reference in the weeks…months…_years_ of darkness to come. I couldn't waste any of the time I still had with her.

I got the feeling that she could sense something off about me on the rare occasions I'd even slightly lose myself to my haunting contemplations. But she ignored it too. It was something she didn't _want_ to see. And I couldn't blame her. Neither of us wanted this.

'_But it's for the best,' _I reminded myself. It seemed I had to be _constantly_ reminded.

Again ignoring all those depression-inducing contemplations, I looked over at the beauty beside me. She sat staring out the window as I drove at a frustratingly crawling place. Our hands entwined, I still marveled at her complete comfort in intimate solitude with me.

Looking over, she smiled tentatively and I returned it wholeheartedly. Why was there always an air of hesitance about her? I didn't understand. It was as if…she wasn't sure of my intent. Hadn't I made it clear?

We pulled into the parking lot of 'Newton's Olympic Outfitters' and I sighed before cutting the engine and reveling in the brief moment before we'd be separate for the next six hours or so. Leaning towards me, she beckoned for a kiss and I conceded. However, anticipating her typical prompt for more, I pulled away and again smiled.

"Have a good day; I'll be here at the end of your shift."

"Okay," she nodded before unbuckling her belt and stepping out of the car.

I watched her make her way inside, greeting Mike Newton on the way. The boy still got on my last nerve, but I tried to be more tolerant of him for Bella's sake. He was one of her friends (for some completely baffling reason!) His thoughts, as always, were clear and annoying.

'_She always looks so nice. Even in that baggy uniform. It's been great working with her!'_

Withholding the urge to jump out of my car and deliver a well-earned punch to his face, I reversed instead and sped away from the parking lot, accelerating quickly. It always felt so glorious to give way to my inherent urge for speed. As I drove, I wondered how I should preoccupy myself with this time away from my beloved.

Hunting? There wasn't a specific need for it other than boredom. Maybe Emmett would want to accompany me. Another option was bringing Alice out for the shopping expedition she'd been begging me to take her on. Though she was completely capable of going alone, she preferred to have someone keep her company.

I supposed that I might as well. Again I was presented with the wish that Bella was more open to receiving gifts. There were a great many things I would've liked to purchase for her. However, there wasn't any changing her mind about it and so I discarded that thought. Who else could I potentially shop for?

A smile crossed my face. Esme, my mother. She always enjoyed little tokens of affection. It would make the trip worthwhile, at least. Pulling down our driveway and into the garage, I nodded to Rosalie as I stepped out of my car.

'_Counting the minutes 'til precious Bella gets off?'_

I smiled to confirm her thought.

'_Ugh! You're seriously pathetic.'_

Deciding to withhold commenting on her unoriginal thoughts, I walked past her and towards the house, where I spotted Alice gathering a bundle of wildflowers. I often came across her doing the most random of things. At least she never got bored.

"Edward!" She hollered as soon as she saw me, having already seen what I had planned. Her enthusiasm was entirely visible as she grinned widely and threw out her hands, the flowers falling in a scattered array around her.

I chuckled and, after accepting the hug, stepped back before lifting my hand and brushing the colored petals from her hair. "Ready to go?"

She nodded before holding up a finger and entering the house. I followed her inside, deciding to greet my father and mother before leaving. They each nodded to me as I heard my sister exchange a quick goodbye with Jasper.

A moment later, Alice reappeared and grabbed my hand before pulling me towards the door. I let her lead the way back to the garage, where she opened the passenger door of my Vanquish. Don't get me wrong, I love driving the car, but it isn't exactly as 'covert' as I would prefer. Still, I supposed, since we _were_ going out of town, I might as well take up the opportunity.

'_Where are you two going?'_

I merely waved to Rosalie before sliding into the driver's seat and taking the wheel, already feeling my mounting enthusiasm for the road. I pulled away before glancing over as Alice started sifting through my CDs. Selecting one, she popped it in before turning up the volume and humming along to the familiar song.

I watched my speedometer reach the triple digits before scanning the area for any radars. It was clear. Beginning to think over a suitable present for Esme, I concluded that she'd probably like some decorations for her office. From beside me, I could hear Alice's mental list.

'…_and I need a new pair of shoes to go with those jeans I purchased last month. Hm…black! That'll go with the designs on the back pockets. And then I'll-'_

Trying my best to tune her out, I instead focused on the instruments and lyrics within the song playing. I drummed my hands almost subconsciously to the beat of it and automatically began translating it into its piano form. I used to do that all the time. I'd hear a song I liked and proceed to play it by ear. It had been awhile since I'd done that.

Then a loud thought entered my head, its entrance unexpected. Simultaneously, from around the bend, I saw a set of headlights and the frontend of a blue Camaro.

'_Here we go!' _The unknown, male voice proclaimed in humor. _'First victim.'_

"Edward," Alice's eyes grew wide. "Slow down!"

"I'm not going to hit him," I complained. She was doubting my abilities.

"He's going to veer towards you!"

'_Is this guy insane!?' _I thought irately. Reluctantly, I eased off the gas pedal as the Camaro pulled into my lane. He was trying to play a game of chicken. I glared through his windshield and the voices from within his car reached me. There were three total.

"I'm serious," a woman said in a stern voice. "Stop playing around before you get us killed!"

At least _someone_ had some sense.

A younger female voice, however, cheered him on. "Don't listen to her, dad, you got this!"

They were a family, I mused, led by an extremely irresponsible, paternal figure. He approached swiftly and I held my ground. He had underestimated my speed and, had I ignored Alice and continued without slowing, he might've been seriously injured in trying to avoid me. There was a guard rail and the only way I might've avoided him was through damaging my own car. Something I would _not_ have been happy about.

As predicted, he cursed before shifting back into his own lane. I caught his eye as he passed, but he only offered a smirk and a wave. From beside him, the woman rolled her eyes and glared while, in the back seat, their teen daughter shook her head before starting to laugh.

I looked away and accelerated forward. I couldn't get over how some people could be so completely impervious to their own fragility. They were often reckless that way. If only that man had known what he was facing off against.

"Well," Alice said with a tilt of her head, "that was sort of fun."

I just shook my head before deciding to change the subject, "how's your fashion line coming along?"

She giggled, "That's like commenting on the weather. Nice aversion tactic."

I shrugged, leaving it up to her to continue. And continue she did. For the entire rest of the ride, she detailed all the new design plans she had set up for the fall season. I appreciated the distraction though, uninteresting as it was.

We arrived in Port Angeles, and she hopped onto the sidewalk before directing me towards a row of antique shops. I saw in her head all the places she planned to visit. I tried not to focus on the fact that the last time I'd been in this city, I had rescued Bella from a group of criminals.

To this day, I could feel the dormant anger brewing in my chest at the knowledge that I had simply let them walk away. My father took care of it, but I would've thoroughly enjoyed destroying them myself.

"In here!" Alice called before darting through a set of doors, above which hung a rusty bell.

Hanging back, I absently observed a line of paintings on the wall, each one depicting a different scene. There were a few black and white cityscapes, and several brightly colored meadow and ocean depictions.

My eyes lowered and lingered on one of a town square, where streams of lighting hung above and a faceless crowd had stopped to observe the couple dancing in the center. A band of musicians were holding a vast array of instruments and the brush strokes had been arranged in wisps to depict the tangible liveliness.

I don't know what it was that drew me to the scene, but I almost felt captivated by it. The simplicity was so enormously contrasted by the obvious vivacity. It reminded me of New Orleans, a place always thriving in its nightlife. There was excitement and pleasure, an indulgent thrill of complete abandon.

"It's nice."

Alice had sidled up beside me while holding a Monet replica that was nearly as large as she was. Averting my focus, I titled my head and pointedly looked to the painting in her hands. "Would you like to take that to the car before we continue?"

"Nope," she answered before handing it off to me and dancing out of the shop.

With a shake of my head, I glanced to the street scene a final time before following my sister down the sidewalk and to our next destination. The rest of our afternoon continued in the same mediocre way. Still, I supposed it was sort of nice to just walk aimlessly around. I was eagerly anticipating the hour in which Bella's shift would be over, but I also reveled in that same anticipation. I had never felt anything like it before she came along.

It always gave me something to look forward to.

The sun was starting to descend in the sky when Alice suggested we head back. I concurred and led the way to the car before arranging the items she had bought in the trunk and then igniting the engine. The returning drive was a little less eventful and I simply contented myself with focusing on my eagerness to see Bella for the evening. I really wish she hadn't felt the need to get that job, it severely limited the time I could spend with her.

"Has something been bothering you, Edward?"

I looked to my sister before forcing a smile, "no, why?"

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously but I knew she couldn't possibly know what was circulating in my mind. I hadn't made any solid decisions yet. "You just seem a little…down. Not all the time but…sometimes. Mostly when I catch you staring off into space like that."

I didn't really want to be reminded of the fact that I might have to leave Bella at the end of the summer and so I tried my best to keep from dwelling on it, especially since people were apparently starting to notice. I couldn't tell Alice about it just yet though or she would try and persuade me against it.

I shrugged, "Nothing's wrong." Another smile formed and I looked towards the road, "promise."

"Alright," she sighed. "Be that way."

She wasn't convinced. Still, I decided to change the subject. "We should probably go hunting tomorrow afternoon."

"I have some things to take care of," she responded and I saw a few different designs flash through her mind. "But I'm sure Emmett would love to take you up on that offer."

I nodded and fell silent for several moments before selecting another CD and letting it play for the remaining duration of our drive. Usually Alice was an insatiable talker but she had taken to quietly analyzing my face instead. I don't know what she was expecting to find but I pretended not to notice.

When we pulled up to the house, I waved to her as she stepped out and she offered a grin before calling out to Jasper to help her unload the items she'd purchased. He came sprinting out of the house and looked into her eyes a brief moment before she stood on her toes to place a quick kiss on his lips.

I glanced away, giving them as much 'privacy' as I could before they opened the trunk, removed the items within and offered another set of waves as they turned to stride across the yard. My sister chatted to Jasper animatedly about the very same ideas she had already shared with me. He merely nodded and wore a fixated smile, content to simply listen to the sound of her voice. Their relationship had always been somewhat exceptional to me. I don't really know what it was exactly. It just seemed to possess a great deal of…depth.

And a strange thought passed through my mind then, one that I immediately suppressed. Did my own relationship with Bella even compare?

It didn't matter. I loved her and that was enough.

Reversing, I sped down the driveway and eagerly towards _Olympic Outfitter's_. My anticipation grew and I accelerated across the highway and into the parking lot. Looking to my phone, I saw that she still had another fifteen minutes until the end of her shift. In comparison to the hours I had already spent waiting, these last few minutes seemed as if they would take an eternity to pass. It still amazed me how much more value time seemed to possess since Bella had become a part of my life. I was aware of each minute with or without her.

As my eyes absently scanned the parking lot and I drummed my fingers to the music on my stereo, I suddenly stopped as I spotted the car that was parked a few rows down. It was unmistakable and the license plate matched. _'How ironic,' _I mused humorlessly.

It was a blue Camaro.

Debating whether to simply ignore it or go inside and see the trio of maniacal humans for myself, it only took a few seconds before I stepped out and leisurely ventured across the lot. Curiosity, once again, had gotten the best of me. I wondered if they would recognize me in turn, though I somewhat doubted it. I had still been driving much too fast for them to make note of any solid features. Furthermore, my windows were tinted to the highest, legal degree.

The wooden steps creaked beneath my feet and I pulled open the door to be met with the familiar sight of a vast array of recreational gear. A line of customers stood waiting and I met the eye of Bella as she looked up in surprise. I didn't usually wait for her inside.

I merely offered a small smile and hung back against the wall opposite the counter as I observed the guests. No one looked familiar to me though.

"Hey there, Edward," Mike greeted with a grin and a wave. He had been making an effort to be more courteous towards me since he had finally (_somewhat_) stopped in his endless pursuit of my girlfriend.

I nodded to him and held my hands comfortably within my pockets. I concluded that the trio was walking about the store somewhere and so I decided to idly peruse the aisles. I noticed that Bella had sent me another confused look and I wondered what I should tell her. And she _would_ ask, I was under no delusion of anything contrary. I suppose I _was _behaving a bit oddly, after all. I questioned why I was even doing this in the first place.

It was probably a bad sign that these people were shopping for any sort of gear that would put them directly in harm's way, whether hiking, rafting or even simply camping. I found the parents in the hunting section and I had to withhold a smirk in response. That was by far the riskiest of the sponsored excursions and far surpassing any of the ones I had just mentally listed.

'_Now what?'_ I wondered to myself.

The responsible party was currently looking through the scope of a rifle and his wife was intently inspecting a selection of hunting bows. They were crazy! And I had thought Bella was a magnet for danger. _'No, they're different. They don't merely attract it, they rush out to meet it.'_

Before they noticed me staring, I decided to turn and continue walking. I had seen them but my curiosity was still present. What was I trying to do? Why was their behavior strangely interesting to me?

"Can I help you find anything, mister?"

It took me a second to register that the young voice was directed towards me and I stopped and turned to stare down into the playful face of the third member of the family. Her eyes took me by surprise a moment, not only the color, which was an admittedly remarkable shade of blue, but the energetic spark that was so profoundly evident behind them.

"You don't work here," I stated. Bella had not mentioned any new employees and I was pretty certain that she and her family were merely visiting Forks, as their car had a Texas license plate.

"Ah," she stated with mock disappointment, "you caught me."

I didn't really know to respond to that and so I merely nodded.

"But you've been wandering around the aisles like you're lost."

It seemed _I_ had been caught in turn. I hadn't even noticed anyone watching me.

"I'm just waiting," I explained.

"Aren't we all?" she responded cryptically.

Tilting my head, I regarded the girl inquisitively, her thoughts clear and direct.

'_He's kind of a strange guy,' _she mused.

"You're kind of strange," she then said aloud. I withheld a look of surprise. Not many people were so open about saying exactly what they were thinking, nonetheless so forward about saying such a thing to _me_. In fact, most were entirely deterred against even approaching.

Then again, she and her parents were seekers of danger and the nonverbal impact my presence always seemed to inflict over people was probably the very reason _why_ she was speaking to me.

"Oh wait," she pointed with a sly expression. "You're a stalker! That _has_ to be it."

And that caught me off guard. Was she serious? I couldn't tell because she had made the declaration impulsively without any accompanying or prior thought. I suppose my behavior could definitely be construed that way. Did she recognize me? I didn't think it was likely.

But how to respond? I had to say _something._ If she was joking it'd probably be best to play along. "Well," I began before forcing a natural-looking smirk onto my face, "you're not too far off actually."

"I knew it," she replied before shaking her head. _'This is kind of fun. Wonder how long I can keep this up. Hm…I'll threaten him! Yeah, that'd be a good direction for this.'_

So she _was_ joking. That was a relief. It was a little humorous that she was actually going to try threatening me though.

"Well, you better keep your distance," she warned. "Or I'll shoot you in the foot."

'_Of all the threats…'_ I thought in a moment of disbelief. "What?" I asked dully.

"You heard me," she reiterated. "I'll shoot you and then kick you down. You'll be off-balance that way, you see."

"Ah," I responded and exaggeratedly nodded, "of course. That makes perfect sense."

An image passed through her mind of exactly the scenario she was describing and I withheld a smile in reaction to the knowledge that it definitely wouldn't transpire the same way in reality. The bullet would probably ricochet and then she'd severely damage her own foot in the process.

Well, actually, I'd have to avoid even allowing her to shoot me altogether, as I wouldn't be able to explain why it wouldn't work. Still, she was only making a threat and so I supposed I didn't even need to worry about it all anyway. It was so surreal to me that this little girl was even threatening me to begin with. There was absolutely no trace of fear to speak of within her mind.

"Yep," she replied before looking to her parents as they seemed to decide on a gun. "You'll meet the same fate as the bears we're fixing to hunt."

"Bears, huh?" I asked as I also observed the pair.

'_This'll do nicely,' _her father remarked silently.

'_You're ridiculous,' _his wife complained to herself.

"They're my favorite," she replied then and looked to me with a small grin. And she was entirely serious. I thought of Emmett then and found it strange that this _human_ was as eager and selective about her game as a _vampire_. Then again, my brother had enjoyed hunting grizzly before his transformation as well. It had cost him his life.

Would she eventually meet that same fate? It seemed so disturbingly likely.

"Do you shoot bears in the foot before kicking them?" I jested.

"Yeah," she said immediately. And I was surprised to find that it was true. An admittedly amusing vision passed through her mind in response. There was a certain pleasure she associated with the event. It was inexplicable.

"…got it," I replied, a little unsure how to even proceed. It seemed she and her father both enjoyed, on top of actually hunting, merely messing around with the animals as well. Shooting and kicking them before running off, permitting the chase, and then having someone cover their escape before finally killing the animal. It was a dangerous activity.

"You should try it sometime," she urged a little too eagerly.

I delivered an incredulous look before shaking my head, "I appreciate the suggestion, but no. I prefer...more _conventional_ methods of hunting."

"What does _that_ mean?" she asked.

"Exactly as I said," I replied smoothly, "conventional. _Traditional_, if you prefer."

"Pssh, that sounds so lame."

"I could say the same."

"You _could_," she reiterated.

Within the silence that followed, I acknowledged that the more I learned about this family, the more bizarre they became. They didn't fit into the standards of society by any means. It was curious indeed. I wondered why they had driven all the way from Texas, though decided I could hardly voice that inquiry lest I grant credence to her accusation that I was truly a stalker.

'_Well, this conversation really died,' _she began thinking amidst the lull. _'What else can I say? Ooh, right! His n-"_

"What's your name?" she interrupted her own thoughts.

I felt compelled to chuckle in reaction to the processes in her head, but decided against it. After all, why would I find her question humorous?

"Edward Cullen," I replied smoothly.

"Nice to meet you, Eddy," the girl responded, surprising me with the instant nickname. No one had ever addressed me in such a carefree way before. "Did you grow up here? In Forks?"

I observed her silently before shaking her head, "no. In fact, my family and I have only recently moved here." Then I realized that the girl had jut created a perfect opening for me to voice my earlier inquiry. I smiled slightly, "What about you? Where are you from?"

'_There,' _I thought_, 'nothing suspicious about that.'_

"Oh no, we're only visiting. Every summer me and my parents take a road trip to various locations on the west coast to hunt," she grinned. "I'm from Texas."

'_They came all the way out here to hunt? Better game, I'm guessing?' _I titled my head, "Texas? What part? My step-brother's from there. Houston." I found it odd that neither she nor her parents had any form of southern accent to speak of, unlike Jasper. I suspected they had actually moved to that state from somewhere else.

"San Antonio," she responded with a continued openness. There was absolutely no hesitance in her demeanor. Then, she surprised me again by offering her hand, a friendly enough gesture but one I was entirely unaccustomed to receive from anyone. What was I suppose to do in this situation? To refuse might come across as…odd. And rude. "I'm Vitalia," she said, "You forgot to ask."

Slowly and carefully, I removed my hand from my pocket and accepted hers, though noted the expected look of astonishment that came across her face in reaction to the stark coldness. "On the contrary, you immediately proceeded to ask me a question after I had revealed mine."

"Damn," she stated as she withdrew her hold, "your hand is freezing!"

'_That's kind of…' _her thoughts immediately, almost forcibly halted and she observed my eyes closely, narrowing hers in an appraising way. It caught me off guard. What did that look of hers mean? Her thoughts had suddenly become so guarded.

But then she exhaled and I saw the briefest of shrugs before her thoughts continued. _'Eh, I'm just being paranoid.'_

I didn't know what to make of the things she was thinking. Did she suspect that something was…_off _about me? There still wasn't any fear though. And the way she had looked into my eyes…it was as if she had merely been confirming something.

'_Who are these people?' _I wondered to myself. Within such a short time, their mystery had intensified.

'_Who is this guy?' _She was also musing. _'He's really weird but…there's something else. I don't know what it is. What an interesting first impression.'_

"Well it was nice to have met you as well, Vitalia," I said finally, ignoring her outburst.

"First impressions are always surprising," she stated aloud.

I nodded, "they certainly are."

Another moment passed in which I appraised her more closely, that liveliness in her eyes more fully capturing my attention. I was reminded of that painting in the antique store, how tangible and riveting it was. She was an individual who thrived in all that life had to offer, it was so brazenly apparent.

'_His eyes are so attentive, like they can see right through me,' _she was thinking in unison, observing me as I observed her. '_But I can see him too. He's a conflicted person. There's something…dangerous about him. Yeah, but also not, like he's actually…good. Kind of like daddy in that way, I guess. Knowing him would be such an adventure, I can tell.'_

She had lost me on that last part, but I found it almost amazing that she was able to see so much in me. It was a little unnerving. I even felt a little…exposed. Her thoughts were so straightforward and honest and yet, despite being privy to them, there was a great deal more that I _didn't_ understand.

'_An adventure?' _I thought to myself absently, my mind transported briefly to one of the hazy images of my past. I saw myself, lying in bed and flipping through the pages of the novel that had impacted my young life more than any other. It was strange that my mind had conjured that scene within such a moment.

Peter Pan, the boy who had never grown up. Even now, I appreciated the value within the compelling plot. The moral at the heart of it all. We're all supposed to move forward, we're supposed to grow into adults and _live_. We're also supposed to _die_.

It's the way things should have always been.

But this spirited little girl was entirely wrong. Knowing me wouldn't be an adventure at all. It'd be a tragedy. I was reminded of what I was going to have to do at the end of the summer. The goodbye I would have to say to Bella.

My eyes lowered.

'_He looks so sad all of the sudden…'_

And they returned to hers in concealed astonishment. She was still observing me and offered a consolatory smile.

"Are you regretting your stalkerly ways?"

I couldn't contain the smile that was prompted in response. It was such an absurd thing to hear amidst my reverie. "I suppose so."

'_Where'd Vi go?' _

I heard her mother silently wonder before I saw she and the girl's father round the corner and approach us. They both looked to me curiously and I decided it was time to excuse myself.

I nodded my head slightly to Vitalia, catching her gaze a final time, before turning and making my way to the front of the store, where I offered Bella a small, appeasing smile when she furrowed her brows. Exiting the establishment, I listened to the parting thoughts and comments of the strange, Texan family.

"Who was that?" the man asked. _'Looked harmless enough.'_

"Did you know him, daughter?" The mother asked and I found it curious that she chose to refer to her in that way. Must've been some inside joke between them. _'He had such a nice face.'_

"No, I've never seen him before. Probably won't again either," the girl replied to them both. _'Which is too bad. I liked talking to him. It was fun.'_

I shook my head as I climbed into my car and waited for the next few minutes to pass. They were so crazy! Nice, harmless, _fun_ to talk to? They had no idea what they were talking about.

And yet…that girl had seen right through me with those eyes of hers, which were so filled with something mine would never again possess.

It had been such a weird sensation.

* * *

><p><em>To be continued…<em>


	2. Cross Paths

**A/N: **Many thanks to all you who have been following/reviewing on this story so far! I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it and that you support this pairing ;) I promise to try and update more frequently. I switch between a lot of different fanon modes. So, stick with me please and keep me inspired! :)

* * *

><p><strong>Earthshine<strong>

Chapter II

"Cross Paths"

…

"_If in the twilight of memory we should meet once more, we shall speak again together and you shall sing to me a deeper song."_

_- Khalil Gibran_

…

[**Edward**]

With one glance out the window, I could see that it was going to be a dreary day. There was a dense layering of fog across the ground, and a certain chill to the summer air. It even looked like it would rain.

I stepped away and slipped on a jacket, just in case my brother and I happened to run into any hunters on our outing who might find it odd that we hadn't chosen a more appropriate sort of attire. I looked to the mirror and sighed when I saw my darkened eyes.

If I had it my way, I wouldn't be heading out on the expedition at all. I'd made a decision to try and spend as much time with Bella as possible before I'd be leaving her. I habitually cringed at the thought of that, and somewhat irately turned to head downstairs.

I'd just returned to my family home after a night that didn't seem quite long enough at Bella's side. I'd spent almost every night with her over the summer; after 10:00 when Charlie would go to bed and until about 8:00 in the morning before he woke up.

This morning I had been cheated of an entire two hours which could have been spent with my love to go satiate the incessant cravings of mine, and all for the sole purpose of preventing a slip up in which I might potentially find myself draining her dry. It reminded me of the very reason _why _I had to be leaving her. We were not compatible. Predator and prey. An angel and a demon.

I was in a very foul mood.

"Hey, kid!" Emmett said with a wide grin before clapping his hands together. "You ready to have some fun?"

I awarded him an incredulous look. He was kidding, right?

'_Ah, missing Bella, eh?'_

I didn't bother responding. He already knew the answer to that.

Leading the way out of the house and across the damp grass, I kept my sight straight ahead. The sooner we got this over with, the better. I reasoned that Bella would probably sleep for another three hours, and then she'd take another hour attending to the necessities.

If all went according to plan, I would be back with her by the afternoon, so long as Emmett didn't draw out the excursion for too long. I didn't really have the patience for his playful antics at the moment. Keeping my eyes fixed on our destination, I hastened my pace, eager and anxious to expedite the time I would spend away. Bella wasn't scheduled for work, I considered sullenly, and so I _would've_ been able to spend the entire day with her. Each moment apart was a moment I considered wasted.

'_Lighten up, will you?' _I heard Emmett say from beside me.

Again, I didn't respond. Why did he insist on having the same conversations?

We entered the fringe of forestry, and I guided us ever deeper so as to avoid any human contact during our most vulnerable activity. Hunting. The absolute expression of our kind. Barbaric, graphic, and instinctual.

It was our form of letting go. It was during such times that our control was not so in check as it otherwise would be.

And, despite myself, as my innate nature's mind began to consider the prospective hunt, I felt a jolt of anticipation, which began to ease the anxiety I had been feeling at Bella's absence.

Emmett chuckled, _'that's more like it.'_

"Shut-up_," _I mumbled and rolled my eyes.

'_There's no need for rudeness!' _he jested.

My mouth slightly lifted into a smirk.

'_Mountain lion, I'm guessing?' _He asked.

My smirk widened a bit in answer.

'_Well, I suppose I'll go with my usual too. I hope I find a nice, big grizzly around here. They're usually the most vicious. Hope you don't mind me taking a little extra time to scope one out?'_

And he must have expected an immediate protest at his last remark because, from the corner of my eye, I saw him tilt his head curiously. But, see, his little remark brought to mind that encounter I had the day before with that curious Texan family.

The memory of my conversation with Vitalia intruded my thoughts, the amusement still very prominent, along with my complete and utter marveling at the absurdity of it. Those people were bound for disaster. And yet my encounter with them still strangely stuck with me.

What _was_ it about them that I couldn't seem to shake?

The father was such a rash and impulsive individual, who wasn't exactly leading his family along the path of responsibility. By any means. The mother, alternatively, just seemed the gently chastising sort, more firmly rooted, but preferring to only protest to herself. It didn't exactly improve their chances.

And the girl…well, she was just as bad, if not _worse_, than her father. There was a playfulness about her, and a complete disregard for caution. She was an extreme and problematic thrill seeker with lively eyes that were far too untutored for their own good.

"Edward?" Emmett asked aloud.

I blinked and thrust my current train of thought aside. It would be best to just put the entire encounter behind me. I wouldn't be seeing those people again. Well, not unless I happened across their listed names in an obituary.

Looking to Emmett, I was reminded of what he'd said before my attention had drifted, and offered a very cross look. "I would like to get back as soon as possible."

'_Ugh, fine!'_ He thought before shaking his head and continuing in a more understanding tone. "I'll try my best to cut it short."

"Thank you," I curtly nodded before picking up my pace and considering that we were nearly far enough to get started.

However, it wasn't long before my thoughts drifted again—though in a considerably more favorable direction. My head was filled with the sound of my sweet Bella's voice.

"_So, what were you doing in Newton's store today?"_

I'd known the question was coming, but I hardly knew what sort of answer to provide. I had thought quickly, trying to offer a reasonable excuse -one which _wouldn't_ prove I was verifiably insane- and eventually just decided to keep it simple, saying that I had returned earlier than expected from my shopping outing with Alice, had grown a little bored, and that it seemed better than waiting in the car. Trying something different, was all.

I immediately made up my mind then to venture into the shop more frequently to grant further credence to my claim. She hadn't seemed to notice my conversation with Vitalia or her family, and that was fortunate, as it would've made my excuse more questionable.

And she didn't question why I'd left the store again before her shift was over, though I _had_ thought of an explanation for that too. I would've just said that, seeing she was being kept very busy, I had decided not to distract her. This, of course, would've been followed with a playfully conceited smile.

Why did I bother lying?

Well, there just hadn't seemed any logical explanation for my behavior at all, and I would definitely be monitoring my actions a little more closely to prevent a similar situation from ever happening again.

I couldn't even begin to explain why I'd entered that shop for the sole purpose of observing those people more closely.

But, then I couldn't help the slightest smirk that formed soon after that thought came.

'_It's because I'm a stalker.'_

The humor I found in that was a little double-edged though, as there _was_ some truth to it. It wasn't something I was proud of. After all, I'd more or less stalked Bella when my interest was initiated, and I still continued my practice of watching her sleep during the night -a fact she no longer seemed to mind.

I just couldn't help myself sometimes. My curiosity was a curse. It was what had gotten me into this entire situation with my darling in the first place. It encouraged me to pursue her, encouraged me to stay, and it was discouraging me from leaving.

Bella deserved better than me. There was just no arguing that. It was solid, irrefutable fact.

The excitement for the hunt lessened considerably, and my mood darkened further.

'_This look good?'_ Emmett asked.

I slowed and glanced about the area, appreciative of the fact that I could occupy my mind for the moment on something else. The area was overgrown and would prove difficult for any human to try and hike through. The slopes were steep and the vines obstructive. It seemed as fitting a place as any.

I offered a nod to my brother and we both crouched a little lower, testing the air for any animal scents and keeping our eyes peeled for signs of life. There was a rustle of movement to our left, but we both averted our attention once we discovered it was only a squirrel -a small creature such as _that _could hardly provide enough nourishment.

I hadn't realized how hungry I actually was, and my mouth began to salivate as I considered it. Maybe Bella was right…maybe the color of my eyes, the signifier of my hunger, really _did_ affect my mood.

I caught site of a few scattered hoof markings in the ground. A deer would have to do, it seemed. We hadn't ventured far enough for me to really have much chance of finding a lion and I was much too hungry to actively seek one anyway.

And so I pursued, the procedure second nature to me as I scouted out the group and selected the male at the head of it. The larger the better. I bided my time just another moment longer before crouching lower, readying my muscles for the chase, and then bounding forward.

The herd was immediately startled, their flight all but instantaneous. My eyes were locked and, within a few short strides, I fell upon the buck. He had not even challenged me in the slightest. He was dead a second later and I lowered my teeth to his neck, where they sank in and I avidly drank from the mediocre-tasting blood of the creature.

As usual, I kept it clean, not a stain to be found upon my white button-down. Rising, I flicked my tongue to the corners of my mouth to remove any lingering remnants and then disguised my kill as just another attack from an _ordinary_ animal.

Then I repeated the process, finding and taking down two more targets -a caribou and an elk- before reaching a sustainable fill. I wondered to myself if Emmett was even close to finishing his hunt, and decided to track him down. It was difficult to judge from the sky what the time actually was -as it was still very overcast- but, with a hasty glance to my phone, I ascertained that it was not yet 10:00.

I came across a couple of badger carcasses, which were in an extremely messy way, indicative of my brother's careless methods of feeding, and continued along the macabre trail until I came to a clearing, where I sighed upon seeing him faced off with a bear.

It was no grizzly, just a common black bear, but he seemed to be deriving as much fun from it as he could. Its temperament was more passive, but he was certainly trying to goad it to its limit. I sat and propped a knee, absently watching him and ignoring his taunting thoughts.

As soon as he was done, we could head back, and I was delighted that it would be a little sooner than I initially predicted. My mood had lightened some, and my attention wandered indifferently across the landscape.

I began to sift through a few different plans for how Bella and I might spend the rest of our day together. We'd attended a few of the local festivals already, and had experienced a couple of the acclaimed restaurants. Of course, there was always our meadow, or maybe just a walk through the forest. Anything at all would be enjoyable with her.

Unfortunately, Bella limited the options to those excursions which required little to no monetary expense -she didn't appreciate me spending even a single dime on her, always stating that it was only increasing the debt she already owed me for being with her.

It was a preposterous belief, but she was determined and could not be swayed from her stubbornness. I also had to eliminate anything too risky, as most extracurricular activities placed her directly in harm's way. She was incredibly accident prone.

'_The meadow it is then,' _I decided. It would be a nice, peaceful afternoon.

It was at that moment that a gunshot suddenly rang out, echoing back from the mountains and startling me into a state of extreme alertness. I rose swiftly and cast my gaze about my surroundings. I sniffed the air, and the scent of gunpowder was evident.

There was a hunter nearby.

I glanced back to see that Emmett and the bear were distracted from their standoff. I made eye contact with him and motioned my head to indicate that we needed to clear the area. He looked extremely disappointed with this development, but nodded before glancing to the bear with a mocking grin.

'_Looks like it's your lucky day, pal.'_

Then he joined me in my sprint through the covering of trees.

'_Well, that's a pain in the ass,' _Emmett considered silently, careful not to say anything aloud until we'd put enough distance between us and whoever had joined us.

I just nodded, feeling a little irritable that my return to Bella was going to have to be postponed. Two badgers were certainly not enough to fill Emmett's appetite. We'd have to venture a little further and he'd have to find something else.

I just hoped he didn't expect to be able to take his time on his next kill.

We both halted as a male scream rang out. Was it the hunter? I glanced back. It had come from the direction of the clearing. The snarl of that bear came soon after, and I shared a look with Emmett.

Seemed his unfinished business had left some trouble for the man.

'_What should we do?' _he asked.

I could see that he would be fine with either option -leave the man to his fate, or go back and somehow intervene. All it would take was a pointedly aimed stone to finish off the bear, and then we could simply vanish.

There wasn't much risk involved at all. Furthermore, I doubted Carlisle would think too highly of us leaving someone to die when we very well could have done something to prevent it.

I nodded to Emmett and he, deciphering the cue, turned with me to head back. We were careful to stick to the shadows and thicker undergrowth and, as we neared, I crept towards a vantage point while Emmett weighed a couple of different stones between his hands.

I peered through a small opening and caught sight of the animal in question, as well as the hunter. But then I -rather ironically- froze as my eyes considerably widened.

'_What?' _Emmett asked, noticing my reaction. _'What is it? He already dead?'_

It was the father. Vitalia's father.

"Nothing," I whispered under my breath to Emmett, who just looked confused before shrugging and moving towards me. _'Should I throw it now?'_

I composed myself, ignoring how bizarre this situation was, and occupied my mind with determining our next course of action. The problem was that the guy was dodging in and out of our line of fire. There was a chance we'd just end up killing him ourselves with the stone.

He and the bear circled each other. The bear swiped a paw, the man ducked beneath it.

'_Whoo!' _His thoughts came to me then. _'This one's _real _agitated!'_

Moron. He was enjoying this. Why was I even bothering?

"We have to get closer," I muttered all but silently to my brother.

'_I don't know if that's a good idea, kid,' _Emmett replied. _'Seems a little too chancy to me.'_

The man aimed his rifle to fire and, for a moment I thought I'd be spared having to intervene at all, before the bear swiped again and knocked the weapon to the ground.

I inwardly groaned. Great.

The bear advanced and we were out of time. With a glance to the fallen weapon, I devised an alternative. I glanced to Emmett, indicating he should follow my lead, before taking off at a human-paced run and emerging from the fringe of trees. I made my way towards the gun, Emmett right behind me.

Both the bear and the father turned at our approach, and I shared a glance with the man before reaching down, grasping the gun and swiftly aiming for the head of the bear, where I delivered a fatal shot.

It fell dead and I exaggerated my panting, Emmett following my example. We needed to give off the impression we'd just rushed like hell to save this man.

_'Not such a lucky day after all, I guess.' _Emmett considered as he observed the fallen animal.

When the father had recovered, looking from me to the bear a couple of times, he tilted his head as his brows furrowed. _'Looks familiar. Where have I seen him before? Oh, right! And what's his name? Uhm…Ed..Edward!'_

"You," he pointed and smirked, meeting me halfway to take his weapon. "It's Eddy, right?" He reached out and clapped me on the back as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "_Nice_ shot!"

"You two know each other?" Emmett looked between us, lingering in his glance towards me. _''Eddy'? Who _ever_ calls you that? What the hell's going on here? Is this what all that was about back there?'_

I cleared my throat and motioned my hand towards the father. "I ran into him at Newton's yesterday. He was purchasing this rifle."

"That's right," the man's smirk widened while he ran a hand along the length of said weapon.

"I'm sorry though, I don't think I ever got your name," I continued.

"Ah, Vi didn't tell you?" He clicked his tongue. "She must've inherited her poor manners from yours truly." He winked and then offered a hand in the same way she had the day before. "It's Diego Santi."

'_Vi?' _Emmett questioned.

However, I simply awarded him a look that said I would explain later, before somewhat hesitantly placing my hand into Diego's and shaking it. He didn't react to the temperature though, as it was a frigid day and therefore understandable why I might feel cold to the touch. _'Santi', huh?_' It was a very Italian surname. Both he and his daughter had the appearance of having an Italian heritage too.

"And who's this?" Diego asked, looking to Emmett.

"My brother," I explained politely. "Emmett."

"Hey there, Emmett," Diego greeted cheerily, also offering a hand to him.

Emmett grinned and took his grip firmly. "What's up?"

"I like a nice, strong handshake," Diego complimented before then placing his hand into his pocket and leisurely hoisting the gun over his right shoulder. "So, what're you boys doing out here?" He furrowed his brows. "You don't have any gear on you?"

Explanation time. I thought up a quick response, so entirely used to having to do this on a frequent basis.

"My brother and I prefer to tread the wilderness without any gear." I winked, "more challenging that way, you know?"

Diego nodded approvingly, the reaction I had predicted. He smirked broadly, "I like it."

I answered his smirk, "fortunately for you. We were right there in that forest when we heard you scream. Came running as fast as we could."

He waved that off, "I had it under control. I appreciate the help, but this isn't anythin' out of the ordinary."

I withheld a reaction to that. _'Right,' _I thought inwardly, _'of course.' _The man's life had been on the line, but what did_ that_ matter to an adrenaline junkie?

"You hunt bear often?" Emmett asked him, looking impressed.

"Yep. Me and the fam make a sport out of it," Diego responded. "I prefer to have my fun before finishing them off."

"I'm with you there," Emmett chuckled and lifted a hand for a high five. I rolled my eyes.

Diego eagerly clapped his hand and then tilted his head again. "Well, since you're all the way out here, wanna come back to the campsite with me? I'm sure we've got some coffee heatin' over the fire. Keeps us goin' throughout the day." He looked pointedly to me and winked, "I'm sure Vi'd love it if you said hello."

'_Now I'm _really _curious,' _Emmett voiced silently.

I withheld an annoyed reaction from my brother and instead thought the situation over. Emmett still had to feed and I was growing more and more impatient to head back to Bella. I just didn't have time to stick around. I'd have to turn down the offer. I began to run through a series of sufficient responses through my mind. Something polite, yet firm enough. He seemed the insistent sort.

"_I'm_ game," Emmett answered then. "I dunno about the coffee though. Me and the bro here aren't too fond of the stuff. Tastes like dirt."

'_Literally,' _he added in silent amusement.

This time I _did_ send him a subtle glare. How_ dare _he accept that offer! He had known I was in a hurry to get back.

He met my stare defiantly, a little smirk even visible from the corner of his mouth. _'Don't look at me like that! There's no way I'm letting you get out of this one. Let's meet this 'Vi' person, hm?'_

Despite wanting to continue the stare down, I remembered that the man was still waiting to hear my answer, and so I reluctantly nodded and continued in the same measured, smooth tone of voice. "Alright, but we can't stay long. The rest of our family is expecting us to return soon."

"Sure," Diego shrugged before turning and leading the way with a sauntering stride. "And no problem on the coffee. It isn't for everyone."

With the man's back turned, I scowled up at Emmett, but he only chuckled and gave me a firm punch in the shoulder.

'_Well, looks like now I'll get to spend a little more time with you! At least try and enjoy yourself. You see Bella all the time. I mean, I understand and all, but still. I miss you.'_

I sighed under my breath and closed my eyes, trying not to react to his ramblings. It wasn't as if I didn't miss him or the rest of my family in turn, but Bella had simply claimed the very center of my world. She was all that mattered to me now. Every moment away from her, no matter who it was with, was a moment less I would be able to spend with her before…well, before it all ended.

Emmett and I would have plenty of time to spend together after that.

'_Sorry,' _he muttered silently to me then, seeing the look that had come over me.

I half-turned my face towards him with a nod and as much a smile as I could summon.

"You guys go to school around here?" Diego asked.

It was fortunate Emmett was so personable, as he went ahead and replied without my needing to.

"Yep. Forks High. You got any kids in there?"

"Nah, we only got the one and she's schooled at home. Gives us all more time for activities like this."

"Homeschooling, huh?" Emmett asked. "Wow. That's neat. You seem a pretty active bunch."

"Sure are. What about you? Is it just the two of you?"

"Nah, we've got a sister. Her name's Alice, and her boyfriend stays with us too. My wife, Rose, completes our merry little group."

"Married already, huh?" Diego glanced back, eyes widened a little. "And not even out of High School?" But, then he faced forward and shrugged. "Eh, who am I to judge? Sometimes the right one just comes along as soon as that. My wife was still in High School when we got together."

"Well, there we go!" Emmett exclaimed, grinning. _'I like this guy, Edward. Real easygoing chap.'_

'_These boys are somethin' else!' _Diego was simultaneously thinking to himself. _'I could get used to hangin' with them like this.'_

I looked between them a moment, before averting my attention to the campsite that was now visible from over the incline. I spotted that blue Camaro and the billowing of smoke from the fire at the center. A pair of tents had been set up, and I could smell the fragrance of the coffee Diego had promised.

I also caught sight of the two women who were sitting near the fire, Vitalia with a cup of said coffee in hand -presumably- while her mother was setting some more logs over the fire. They were animatedly talking, but I couldn't really discern what they were saying.

After a few steps further though, their thoughts started trickling through.

'_-that stubborn man! Where is he anyway?' _The mother was wondering to herself.

'_Mom doesn't realize how alike she and daddy really are,' _Vitalia mused. _'Maybe that's why they disagree so m-Ooh! I love this song.' _She'd had just interrupted her own thoughts _again_. The sound of a song entered her mind and she mentally catalogued the lyrics. There was an earbud in one ear, while she listened to her mother speak through the other.

'_Brings me back to the playground days,' _She pondered and, through her memories, I was presented with some vivid recollections of what was she referring to. I saw her running about a park with a lineup of stuffed animals before her. And, arms hoisting an imaginary gun, she proceeded to crouch down and 'hunt' each one of them.

'_I used to have so much fun! I should do it again sometime! I-oh my God! An eagle!'_

Her thoughts had been interrupted, halted, and were averted as her attention lifted to the animal in the sky. I couldn't help but chuckle quietly in reaction to the return of that girl's very strange thought processes.

Emmett glanced to me, undoubtedly surprised by my shift in expression, and I only looked to him as I composed my face.

'_What's so funny?' _He asked.

I just shrugged and faced forward, making sure to pay a mind to my reactions more carefully. It was kind of amusing seeing the confusion on my brother's face though. That had certainly been a perk, if nothing else.

We suddenly heard a startled shout and watched as the mother jumped and pointed to a lizard on the ground. Apparently it had crawled across her leg. Diego chuckled as he observed the scene, hastening his pace to reach his wife before the excitement was over with.

Then Vitalia's laugh rang out, the sound upbeat and filled with that same liveliness her eyes had. There was nothing but sheer delight to be found in that sound. It was carefree and high-spirited. I'd never really heard anything like it before, Alice's being the only one I could even compare it to.

'_That her?' _Emmett asked. _'The 'Vi' person?'_

I just nodded.

'_What's the story there?' _He pressed. _'You aren't really the sort that goes out of his way to make friends.'_

"Later," I mumbled. It would be improbable of me to offer him an explanation at the moment.

We were now close enough for them to hear our approach and, when they both turned, the mother outstretched her arms and rushed towards her husband, hardly having taken notice of us, while Vitalia immediately grinned.

'_No way! It's the interesting guy again. And he brought a friend! This'll be fun.'_

"Eddy!" She hollered and placed a hand onto her hip. A smirk to mirror that of her father formed across her face, and she lifted a brow.

'_No way, dude!' _Emmett teased me. _'You two timing on Bells? I didn't even know you had it in you!'_

I narrowed my eyes prominently. Why would he even joke about something like that?

'_Wow. Look, I know telling you to chill is a little pointless but, hey, settle down. I didn't mean anything by it.'_

I just looked away then, fully intending to ignore him.

Vitalia stayed where she was, apparently just waiting for us to reach her, while her mother embraced Diego, who laughed and asked about the lizard.

"It just snuck up on me, that's all," she said with a shy smile and even a little blush. It was a curious reaction from someone her age.

Though, to be fair, both she and her husband were rather youthful-looking to have a teen daughter. Well, on the normal scale of standards as far as 'youthful-looking' went. They seemed the child-at-heart sort too. The whole family, for that matter, were childlike in their antics.

Vitalia looked a great deal like her parents. Not only in appearance, but also in her behavior and mannerisms. She had inherited her father's darker shade of hair, as well as the impressive blue of her eyes, but she had her mother's spark of energy. That somewhat naïve thrill for her life. There was something a little darker in Diego, though I couldn't quite determine what it was. His thoughts were more closely guarded than theirs.

It was an intriguing bit of insight, and I recalled that Vitalia had actually made an interesting comparison between the man and myself. She had said, like her father, there was something dangerous about me. What was dangerous about Diego?

"This is my _lovely _wife Eden," Diego introduced the woman beside him, and she grinned widely before waving to each of us. He looked to her and indicated us both, "you remember Eddy, right?" She nodded and then he pointed to Emmett, "and this's his brother Emmett."

"Nice to meet you Emmett!" She exclaimed, sending another wave.

He grinned a wide grin to match hers. "Yeah, you too!" Then his face turned contemplative. "…Eden, huh? Like the garden?"

"Yes!" She giggled. And it was such a girlish sound. "Exactly."

'_He has a nice face too,' _she thought to herself. _'They look so alike.'_

'_What a sweet lady,' _Emmett winked to me.

We turned as a group then and made our way to the campsite, where Vitalia approached me with a wink.

"Didn't think I'd be seeing _you_ again. What brings you out here?" She gave me a sly look. "Stalking still?"

The joke wasn't old, and it saved me from having to reinvent an explanation. How convenient it was that she made her own conclusions about these things. "Guilty," I smirked.

'_Ooh, she really _does_ know you!' _Emmett thought to himself, before looking to her and feigning an appalled expression. "Has my brother been stalking you?! That's a very bad habit of his."

"Yes, it is," Vitalia nodded her assent, eyes serious. _'He has a brother, huh? Cool. They definitely look related. And how nice. He's playing along. This is great!' _

From beside us, Eden turned to her husband and asked how my brother and I _really_ came to be here. He wrapped an arm about her shoulders and walked with her to the tent as he explained, though she didn't seem too pleased to hear of his close encounter with the bear.

"I'm Emmett," my brother was introducing himself to Vitalia with a hand lifted over his chest. "Lovely to meet you, Vi."

"You too, Emmy," She nodded, instantly coming up with a nickname for him too. It was obviously a regular thing for her to do. "And I can definitely see the resemblance between the two of you."

"Yeah, you too," He pointed between her and toward where her father was re-emerging from the tent. "That's a pretty neat eye color you've got. Real striking."

"Says _you_ with the gold eyes!" She exclaimed, "I've never even seen that before." Her gaze shifted once between me and Emmett.

"Yep, the whole family has it," my brother offered.

"Weird."

"Yeah, guess it is."

'_Some freckles, a little nose ring there, a funny personality, those eyes. She's cute, Edward.' _

I tried not to glare, I really did, but I lowered my eyes to hide it when I couldn't manage to keep my gaze from narrowing. Emmett needed to stop. It wasn't something I was even willing to joke about.

"How old are you, Vi?" Emmett continued.

"I'll be seventeen in October," she responded. "You?"

"Nineteen."

'_He's friendly,' _She thought to herself. _'They might look similar, but they're so different. Hm…Eddy's not really saying much. Looks kinda down again. Should I say something to him? Maybe he feels left out.' _

"How old are _you_, stalker?"

I was hardly feeling left out, just a little annoyed with Emmett. Still, I looked up and responded, my voice betraying nothing. "Seventeen."

"I'm catching up then," she winked.

'_Hardly_,' I thought to myself, though also found I couldn't direct any real annoyance towards her.

"I might outrun you," I couldn't help but respond cryptically. "I'm very fast."

'_Wow!' _Emmett replied. _'Don't let too much slip there, show off.'_

I just had to ignore him. That was all.

"Oh, are you?" Vitalia answered me, tilting her head and smirking. "Sounds like a challenge to me. We should race."

"I wouldn't bother if I were you."

'_Ah, I see. This is a way to get to him. He likes challenges,' _she observed, still somehow able to see me so unnervingly clearly. What a perceptive individual. _'Now, how to convince him? Aha! I have it! I'll jus-'_

"What?" She asked me, and I found myself eager to hear what she had come up with. There really was no telling with her. After all, her_ threat_ had been to shoot me in the foot. "You scared? Scared a_ girl_ will beat you?"

Alright…yes. That worked. I felt a stirring within myself, that part of me which really _did _thrive on a good challenge. Scared? _Me_? Ha!

"Not bad, _bear-kicker_," The smirk returned to my face.

'_Not bad at all,' _Emmett grinned. _'Man, she has a way, doesn't she? And she kicks bears? Awesome!'_

"So, we're doing this then?" She asked.

"Right now?"

She shrugged, "why not?"

Hm…I supposed there really wasn't any reason _not_ to. I looked to Emmett, and then to her parents, who were both supportive of the idea.

"She isn't just messing around," her father voiced aloud. "She outruns bears."

"That's the coolest thing I've ever heard," Emmett said, looking approvingly to Vi.

Eden rolled her eyes and shook her head, but I saw a smile form there at the corner of her mouth. The poor woman. She was outnumbered by the unreasonables within her family.

"I'm not worried," I responded only before looking about for a good spot to hold our little challenge.

'_You sure this is a good idea, kid?' _Emmett asked silently. _'Can you control yourself? I mean, I know how competitive you are.'_

I just awarded him a look that said _please_. He had no reason whatsoever to doubt me. I only had to focus on keeping my actions slowed, on maintaining a human-like pace, and all with still enough force to far exceed whatever abilities Vitalia had.

Emmett grinned and clapped his hands then, "alright then! Looks like we've got ourselves a race!"

"There," I pointed to a somewhat paved path that ran roughly 200 yards. "And the finish line will be that cluster of trees at the end."

"Perfect," Vitalia responded, coming to stand beside me and looking out towards it. She nodded. _'Mhm, that'll do nicely. Let's see if he's just all talk. It'll be fun either way.'_

She wasn't nearly as competitive as I was, which, of course, was fortunate for her. It would make the loss easier to handle.

"We'll be rooting for you, daughter!" Eden hollered, pumping a little fist into the air.

"Do us proud," her father smirked.

'_Such a shame,' _I thought with a bit of humor.

'_You're going to crush this little girl, aren't you?' _Emmett asked while subtly shaking his head, though a smile remained.

I answered him with a smirk.

'_Well, do what you do best, little bro.' _

I planned on it. Looking to Vitalia, I quirked my head towards the race site. "Ready?"

She grinned, "yep!" Then she began walking with her head held high. I followed after her, absently listening to the observing thoughts of the three behind us and preparing to show them just a glimpse of what I was capable of.

The chill of the wind swept past us, sort of setting the scene for what we were about to do and, when we reached the starting point, I offered the girl a slight smirk.

"You can always back out."

"I'm no quitter, Eddy," she assured me with a sudden wave of sincerity.

She might not be as competitive as I was, but she sure loved the thrill. Her eyes were gleaming with a very notable playfulness. They were practically overflowing with it.

'_I can't wait!' _she thought.

I glanced across the way to shout out at Emmett. "Call it!"

He nodded and held up a hand before beginning the countdown with each finger.

I tensed and Vitalia did the same from beside me.

"3…2…"

I sent a final, swift glance to the girl before softly muttering, "1," in unison with my brother and taking off as soon as he said: "Go!"

I actively monitored my speed, making sure to keep it at a believable level, while Vitalia fell behind. She _was _fast for a human, but it was hardly anything on me.

'_Damn!' _She thought. _'He wasn't kidding.'_

'_That's Edward for you,' _Emmett chuckled.

'_Oh no...' _Came Eden's thoughts.

'_She's going to lose,' _Diego added.

I furrowed my brows as I neared the end. Vitalia's thoughts had suddenly become a jumble of several different things. It was impossible to discern much of anything.

Then, I heard her cry out and fall to the ground and I instinctively stopped and turned to look down at where she was lying a few feet behind me. It looked like there'd been a root sticking up through the grass and, at full speed, I imagined the fall must have hurt.

"Ouch!" Emmett grimaced.

"Are you alright?" Her parents called out to her, one after the other.

I felt a mix of both concern and amusement as I crossed the short distance to where the girl was starting to pick herself up from the ground. I _did_ hope she hadn't been scraped up too badly. Human beings really were such fragile souls, a fragility which this one really needed to be more aware of.

I observed the immediate damage as I knelt on one knee beside her. I tried to hide a smile, not wishing to offend her. "Are you alright?"

Then my brows creased when I heard her softy chuckling. She sat up and lifted a hand to move the hair away from her face, jeans torn and scraped at her knees and a few scratches on her hands and forearms. "How embarrassing," she muttered with a small grin. _'Shit,' _she thought, _'stupid root.'_

The scent of blood from her open wounds reached me but, since my exposure to one as strongly compelling as my own darling, I had gained a very significant amount of control. It hardly even fazed me.

She looked to me then as I offered an uncertain smile.

"Why are you laughing?" I asked. It _had_ been a pretty humorous development, I just wasn't accustomed to seeing the victim find the same amount of humor in their own misfortune as I did.

"I don't know," She replied, before smirking. "It was very gentlemanly of you to come over here to help me though."

I rolled my eyes and visually inspected her any serious wounds. However, I looked to her instantly when she lifted a hand to give my cheek a pat. I didn't really know how to react to that. Her actions were so abrupt and unaccompanied by any prior thoughts to warn me.

'_Ooh, wait!' _Whatever inspiration she had just reached halted, and instinct seemed to take her over. I wasn't offered any insight.

"You're a sucker, Eddy," she voiced.

I looked to her with notable confusion until I saw her eyes glimmering mischievously. My own narrowed in suspicion before she suddenly sprang up and I saw too late what she had meant by that statement.

'_I'm going to win this thing!' _She grinned victoriously, dashing past and towards the finishing point.

If I wasn't restricted from using my perks as a vampire, I could've easily overtaken her. However, as it was, there was no way I could succeed. She'd caught me by surprise.

But, I was still determined to try, and I sprang up after her, using just a little more speed than might have been wise. However, it still wasn't enough, she jumped and landed on the other side of the 'line', lifting her hands above her head and grinning widely.

'_No way!' _Emmett thought. _'This is unheard of! You were totally played, bro!'_

I looked to the girl sullenly as my steps slowed and she turned to face me. Her scraped knees didn't even seem to be a factor here.

"You're a cheater," I declared. However, if I was being entirely fair, she had been far outmatched in the first place. And she hadn't planned the trip either, but had simply used it to her advantage when she'd recognized the opportunity.

She was clever, and very resourceful.

Her parents clapped and cheered, and Emmett joined in right along with them. He was enjoying the outcome far too much for his own good. I had to admit though…it _had_ been impressive of the girl, even if it _was_ a little humiliating to me.

"I don't consider that cheating," she answered breathlessly and with a shake of her head. "There was no way I could beat you. You had an unfair advantage on me from the beginning."

"Well," I countered. "I _did_ try to warn you."

"Yes, you did," she responded with a wink. "But, I think the word you're looking for is 'tricked'. I _tricked_ you, Eddy."

That wasn't of much comfort to me, but she was right. That was, essentially, what she had done. A human girl had outwitted a vampire.

'_Is he upset?' _She wondered to herself as she took to observing me again. It was something I found myself wishing she wouldn't do so often. She was always far too accurate for comfort.

Stepping towards me, she offered her hand again. "Don't be a sore loser. It was fun!"

I tilted my head, discerning nothing flaunting or boastful about her at all. There was only energy; that energy which was always seemed present in her eyes. And they were so convincing. She was right. It _had _been fun.

Lifting my hand and placing it within hers, we shook, and she didn't shrink away from the coldness of my skin.

"Yeah," I responded with a nod, whatever demeaning feeling I'd derived from the loss curiously slipping away as I voiced that.

She took her hand back and placed it into her jacket pocket, before turning and slowly making her way back to the campsite. I followed after her, and then began encountering some more practical thoughts.

"Do you have antiseptic with you? You should get those cuts cleaned."

"Oh," she looked down to the marks on her arms and hands. "Yeah, we do." She shook her head, and I saw she was reminding herself of the fall. "I'm usually not that clumsy." Reaching up, she moved her hair away from her face, the wind at our backs now.

I smiled to myself a little, reminded of Bella. "Well, I'm used to it. I deal with a particularly clumsy person on a daily basis."

'_Hm…' _She turned her eyes to me and looked to the smile on my face. _'I wonder who he's talking about? Someone important to him, definitely.'_

But she didn't ask, only nodded.

As a silence fell, I glanced over and saw an easy smile on her face as she redirected her attention ahead. Within my dangerous presence, she seemed not the least bit wary or concerned. Some humans were far too trusting. _'Like Bella…'_

But, that wasn't really the case with Vitalia was it? Rather than being a matter of trust, I suspected that, due to her lifestyle, she was somewhat desensitized to danger. I didn't think I'd ever been in this position before either, encountering someone who maintained such a disposition.

Her parents were the same way. I looked to them and overheard their conversation with my brother as we neared.

"How long're you guys in the area?" Emmett asked.

"We'll be here for the rest of the summer," Diego answered. "We're going to move about between a few different camping spots, and we'll probably head into town every few days or so for supplies."

"This your first time coming to this region?"

"Nah, we've been up here a couple times before. First time to Forks though."

"Does your family do any hunting?" Eden asked, and I was surprised that_ she_ was the one to approach that subject.

"Oh yeah," Emmett grinned. "We love it._ My_ favorite is Grizzly, but my brother there prefers those mountain lions."

"Good choices," Diego nodded approvingly. "Daring. We usually only come across those black bears around here."

"Yeah," Emmett returned. "Have to head a little further north for the good stuff." He tilted his head, "you said you make a sport out of your hunting. What'd you mean by that?"

I caught a shared looked between Diego and his wife, and also the idea that had suddenly entered his head.

"Why don't you just join us on one of our hunts? We'd love to have you and Eddy along."

My mind sort of stilled. This was so bizarre. It was almost a reverse situation.

'_Edward, what's with these people? This isn't normal, is it?'_

Fortunately, Emmett had the good sense to look skeptical. It wasn't a good idea to go on a hunt with them. Besides, I didn't exactly have the free time to spare anyway.

He shrugged, "I don't know. We like to keep it traditional."

Diego laughed, "Well, you boys _are_ walking around in the wilderness with no gear. I guess you aren't kidding. Still…it means you like to walk on the risky side of things. Our methods of hunting are perfect for you!"

"Thanks for the offer," Emmett continued, and I felt so proud of him. "But, I think we're fine."

'_Too bad,' _he thought. _'It really does seem like fun. I'm guessing 'no' though, right, kid? Could be a little too risky, I guess.'_

That was exactly right. However, in the next moment I discovered that I had been right in my earlier assessment. Diego _was_ an insistent one.

"Why not?" He shrugged. "It isn't _too_ dangerous. Take a walk on the wild side, huh?"

Thankfully his wife intervened. "Diego," she said strictly. "Don't pressure them into this. They don't want to do it. Leave them alone."

He sighed heavily, and smirked a little. "Alright, fine. But, if you change your mind, you know where to find us."

Emmett nodded, "will do!"

'_Ooh! Nice!' _

Vitalia's thoughts gave me cause to look to her again as she stooped to retrieve a wildflower and, upon closer inspection, I identified the type. 'Trientalis Borealis'; a Northern Starflower, common to the wet regions of the north-western United States.

Despite being so common though, she was positively fascinated by it. Her gaze was alive with a childlike delight as she twirled it between her fingers. She grinned and looked to me before holding it out, "look."

I raised a brow, but obliged her. There was nothing especially notable about the flower, and so I wondered why she was so taken with it.

"Do you know what it is?" She asked.

I nodded and answered flatly, "yes. They're found just about everywhere here."

"But it's rare to find one this late in the summer," she informed me. "It's holding on." She looked to it and her smile widened.

I looked to her, saw that smile, and thought over what she said. _'It's holding on…' _What an observation that was. The girl lived on the edge and yet she also slowed down to enjoy such little wonders as that flower.

She embodied some of the most fundamental principles of humanity. She was excited for all of it. She approached life brightly, appreciatively, and eagerly. She seized moments and, as reckless as she was, she lived like that fragile mortality of hers could end without warning.

I smiled then.

There was something about that which I found myself very receptive to. I couldn't regain what she had. It was untouchable by me or any of my kind. I again thought of that vibrant painting, how it had appealed to me, and I realized this wasn't any different.

Her way of life appealed to me. Of _course_ it did. It was like the heaven I couldn't enter-only marvel at. Wanting what could never be mine. Humans and vampires were so separated by more than physicality.

I was a member of the living dead, frozen in time, while she, Bella, and all the others were on the plane of the living and touched by life in a way I was unable to be.

Life was such a beautiful thing, and it was like the painting. I was trapped and doomed to observe, without ever really being part of it, while humanity thrived beyond the barrier.

'_He's such a deep thinker,' _Vitalia mused as she let the flower fall to the earth. _'I show him one thing and he goes all silent. And the way he's smiling…there's a lot on this mind. There's something really complex about this guy.'_

She looked to me, and I lowered my smile but didn't guard my gaze against her. She saw so much it didn't really matter whether I forced indifference or not.

'_I think I'd like to get to know him better,' _she mused.

At first, I was a little resistant to that idea. I didn't have time for anyone else. Not right now. Furthermore, I didn't need to connect with _another_ human being.

However, I couldn't help but feel intrigued to learn more about her. To spend a little more time observing this vibrant representation; this masterful painting.

I wanted to get to know her too, but I was walking a dangerous line. It required further thought. I had Bella, and that was more than enough.

I'd also be leaving...

'_But Vitalia will be leaving at the end of the summer too. It will be expected. There won't be much of a risk of letting her down. We'll both just naturally go our separate ways.'_

I could simply look at it as an experiment of sorts. A unique insight into her way of living. A way of living rarely experienced by the rest of the human population.

And as far as the risk…well, in comparison to Bella, and the draw _her_ blood had on me, the physical bond that was always tested between us, I was virtually harmless to Vitalia.

My curiosity really was going to be the death of me, wasn't it?

Would Bella mind my talking to Vitalia? She was ridiculously jealous at times, but she _did_ have that Jacob Black character for a friend. Surely she would be receptive to granting me the same courtesy? She had absolutely nothing to fear from me. My devotion, even after our eventually parting, would be eternally solidified.

Besides, Vitalia was under no presumption here. She only wanted to get to know me as well. There was no other motive.

And so, when she took her phone out of her pocket and looked to me with a question lingering in her mind, I was ready to provide her with an answer.

"How about a phone number, stalker?" She asked before that sly smile of hers returned. "Or, do you already know it?"

I smirked and removed my own phone, "no, I haven't quite managed to acquire that information yet."

"Oh, I see," She replied. "This's part of your plan, isn't it? Make me comfortable and then freely offer it to you?"

"Caught again," I winked.

She chuckled and then offered me her number. I slowed my keystrokes to a believable pace and gave her mine. She inserted them into a message and then immediately proceeded to send me something.

It was just a smiling face, but it was very symbolic to her character.

"You ready to head back?" Emmett asked, eyes darting between me and the girl beside me.

I was actually a little surprised he hadn't decided to comment on the exchange of numbers.

Vitalia and I having already reached the rest of our group, I nodded. Right. It was time to leave. How had I lost track of time? I found my eagerness to see Bella returning, but I didn't feel as impatient. It was bearable.

Odd.

My brother and I said our farewells, Diego reinstating his offer a final time, as his wife frowned disapprovingly. Vitalia grinned when we looked to her and waved, though I could see in her mind that she had considered going in for a hug from each of us before deciding against it.

I think I was relieved with her choice, but I wasn't entirely sure.

Me and Emmett turned to go and, once out of sight, picked up our pace and felt a nice surge from the release of our restriction to accommodating humans.

I found it strange that Emmett's thoughts were so quiet, and I looked to him curiously. However, as soon as my attention was on him, he began using a similar method of distracting his mind as Alice often used when she was trying to avoid me hearing something.

Why was he doing that?

I decided not to bother discerning the reason at the moment though. It could wait until later.

My thoughts turned to Vitalia and I smiled a little. I was excited to learn more about her. To observe more from her. She had been right,it _was _going to be a bit of an adventure. Just a short chapter to be added to the history of my long existence. It was so curiously…uplifting to consider.

Then, my eyes were directed upwards to the overhang of trees as the clouds parted for just a moment and the sun broke through. My prediction had been wrong. It seemed that it _wasn't_ going to rain. The sunlight trickled down, touching my skin in sparse sections and pleasantly warming the cold surface. It was fortunate that Emmett and I had left the encampment when we did, and I decided to be a little more careful around those people if I was going to be continuing to see them in the future.

After all, safe as the association with that girl seemed, there was always a risk. My primal nature was still that of a vampire, and the monster inside, though controlled, was _always_ ravenous.

* * *

><p><em>To be continued…<em>


	3. Unbalanced

**A/N:**I am really excited that this story is getting so much attention! It helps keep me going ;) So, thank you so all much for the favorites/follows and reviews! I really appreciate it! Keep inspiring me!

Oh, and happy Friday the 13th, everyone! Stay safe out there :)

* * *

><p><strong>Earthshine<strong>

Chapter III

"Unbalanced"

…

_"You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself."_

_-Alan Alda_

…

[**Edward**]

As I watched Bella drift off to sleep, her body held loosely in my arms, the blanket wrapped securely around her fragile body to protect her from the coldness of my skin, I smiled and contented myself with watching the subtle motions of her face.

I had never been so thoroughly fascinated with anyone in the entirety of my existence. Each word and every movement was a sacred thing to behold, and I felt so unworthy to be the receptor of her attention.

Not a day went by now that I didn't feel the guilt right along with the adoration I felt for her. The two walked along, side by side. I couldn't escape either one, which made my final decision so much more difficult. I was equally torn in each direction.

On the one hand I, of course, wanted to remain beside her for the rest of her human days. I wanted to be there to experience everything with her. However, when I considered how selfish that was, and how remaining with her would deprive her of that human experience I so desired her to have, I felt myself pulled in the opposite direction.

It was a very frustrating and endless tug-of-war.

As if on cue, my mind began to consider other possibilities, reasons to disregard my impending decision to leave my beloved. The primary one being: It'd be more dangerous for her without me, right? I tried to console myself with that logic, but knew I was only making excuses. I was more dangerous to her than anything else she'd be exposed to, accident prone though she was.

I'd been over this with myself time and time again and it always came back around to the same thing. I was a vampire. I was dangerous to her. There was just no arguing that. She deserved so much more than what I was capable of offering.

If I had the ability to cry, even a slight tearing of my eyes, I'm sure I would've. Countless times. And now, as I watched Bella sleeping without a care in my arms – in the embrace of a predator – I felt the urge again. However, my immortal eyes would produce no reprieve for me.

Bella mumbled and my gaze refocused on her as she snuggled closer and sighed. Her sigh was content and I felt a wave of disgust with myself as equivalent to the pleasure that sigh afforded me. Why could I not just pursue one decision or the other?

I tried to quell my frustration. It was premature. I did not need to be focusing on any of it right now. I still had time, time to enjoy the company of the angel beside me. But…try as I might to avoid reflecting on the trials to come, they lingered relentlessly on the back of my mind. I could never just completely distract myself from them.

My mind naturally took to considering so many things at a time on a daily basis, always full of thoughts – my own and those of others – and I was forced to divide my attention between individual concepts. Due to this, I supposed it was nearly impossible for me to ever_really_ distract myself.

There was nothing I_didn't_ hate about my existence as a monster.

A sudden light and vibration upon the nightstand prompted my eyes to lift, and I furrowed my brows. My family knew where I was and wouldn't bother trying to reach me unless there was some sort of emergency.

Reluctantly I rose, making sure to keep my movements gentle so as not to wake my darling, and reached for the phone. I looked down to the screen, and my confusion was replaced with a look of surprise.

Vitalia.

I checked the time, saw it was a quarter to midnight, and wondered why she was contacting me so late. It was a text message and I stared at the notification screen a long while in deliberation. I didn't really know why I was so hesitant. I was curious, of course, but I also wanted to disregard it until the morning so that I wouldn't miss out on a single moment with Bella.

I looked to my beloved and smiled warmly as she breathed evenly.

I'd lied to her again – well, rather, omitted. When she had asked how my hunting trip had gone, and inquired over why I had arrived a little later than she had been expecting, I only said it'd been a primarily uneventful trip, and that our prey had been a little more difficult to locate than usual.

I couldn't disclose having met up with Vitalia and her family without also having to explain how and why I knew them, which was something I definitely didn't feel I could reveal. Even considering that conversation, and how it would sound out loud, was enough to make me feel more assured of my own discretion.

I was also sure that Emmett had a few questions for me about it, and I reasoned that I was avoiding going home to delay having that discussion. However, I _did_still want to know why he had been guarding his thoughts from me. It put me in a bit of a bind. Perhaps it was worth the discussion so that I could figure out the reason for his odd behavior.

My mind returned to the issue at hand, and I looked to the phone in my grasp. I examined the name – each letter of it repeatedly – as I tried to arrive at a decision. One, quick message wouldn't do any harm, right? I wouldn't _miss _much from Bella at all. Maybe a few seconds or so.

Besides, I was wasting a lot more time in my pondering the matter, and I knew that if I _did_ decide to hold off, that it'd be just another thing on my mind that I'd be curious over. In order to devote my full attention to my darling, without distraction, I supposed it'd be best if I simply sent a hasty response.

Mind made up, I flipped the phone open and selected my message tab before reading over what the girl had sent me.

**Vitalia**: Hey, Stalker! You awake? (: Oh, wait. What am I saying? Of course you are. Stalkers are up at all the long hours of the night. It's the best time to indulge those habits of yours, isn't it? (;

I smiled, resisting the compulsion to chuckle as well so as not to wake Bella. I shook my head at what the girl had written before swiftly keying a response, my movements so quick that the entirety of the message was composed and sent in under 4 seconds.

**Edward**: Correct again. I'm awake and indulging my habits. So, in the future, you'd best refrain from distracting me during these 'long hours of the night'. I'm quite dedicated, you see.

I closed the phone and, rather than rising again, placed it into my pocket and wrapped my arm around Bella, feeling that warmth from her even through the thickness of the blanket she wore. However, it was no sooner that I'd done so, that I felt another vibration from my phone.

I deliberated again but, my curiosity, already indulged once, returned even stronger as I felt a need to know how she had chosen to respond to my comeback.

**Vitalia:**Oh, I see. I'm not your first victim then, am I? (;

**Edward**: Not hardly.

I didn't lower the phone this time, instead opting to at least continue and complete the conversation. In a few minutes, I would simply tell her goodnight and then I could go back to my devoted attention to my darling.

When my phone lighted again, I found myself almost eagerly shifting my eyes across the words on the screen. I definitely wasn't too fond of the text messaging method of communication, as it so completely cut me off from a great influx of information; there was no possible way for me to hear the accompanying thoughts to what was being said. However, I was willing to just make do for now, and obtain what information I still could.

**Vitalia:**I didn't think so. You seem to really know what you're doing. And your brother mentioned that it was a bad habit of yours. He's really cool, by the way. I'm glad I met him. I had a lot of fun with you guys!

I found myself in the rare position of trying to figure out how to respond to that. It didn't surprise me that she would have fun with a pair of vampires, given our dangerous nature. However, what I was trying to sort out was whether I could respond in kind.

Fun. Had I had _fun_? I remembered feeling very anxious to get the hunting trip over with so that I could return to Bella, and I also recalled feeling annoyed and frustrated when me and Emmett had to intervene for Diego with that bear.

But then, somewhere along the way to their camp, after meeting Eden and seeing Vitalia, perhaps during the race, I had seemed to lose track of the time, my competitive side taking my focus as well as my ponderings over the girl herself and my debate concerning whether or not to allow myself to get to know her better.

I'd enjoyed myself. Somehow…I had, and I didn't really know how to feel about that. It…unbalanced me a little. I reread the text, the words warm and open, and my mind grew conflicted.

Should I feel enjoyment with anyone aside from Bella? Should I have permitted myself to be distracted that way? I lifted my eyes to my love's sweet face, watching as her brow twitched and as her lips parted upon an exhale of breath.

Another vibration demanded my returned attention to the mobile screen.

**Vitalia:**You think too much. I realized that about you today. You're thinking right now, aren't you?

I tilted my head, and an amused smile crossed my face. Even from a distance, she still somehow managed to read me. That was perhaps one of the strangest aspects to the entire situation. Her inadvertent ability to read me so accurately. What she said, though, succeeded in momentarily redirecting my attention to considering a response.

**Edward:**Well, I suppose it's just another habit of mine. Emmett and I also enjoyed our time with you and your family. He is definitely an entertaining person to be around, and so I'm not surprised you took a liking to him.

I kept it formal and focused on Emmett. It seemed the best way to answer. I sighed and lowered the phone, eyes instead drifting up towards the ceiling. Was it wrong to find enjoyment elsewhere? My mind stubbornly returned to that inquiry.

I felt like it was. I felt like, somehow, I was being unfaithful to Bella. As if I was tarnishing what we shared. She was my sole source of joy. The very center and all that mattered in my universe. To share that part of me with someone else, that enjoyment of mine...would take away from, at least in part, what I should be giving entirely to Bella.

Even now, I was choosing to continue texting Vitalia rather than hold and admire the beauty beside me.

Another vibration had me lowering my eyes slowly and looking to my phone a bit reluctantly. I decided that I would end the conversation and think over this situation more thoroughly. It had been imprudent of me to even offer the girl my number in the first place.

**Vitalia:**Well, he isn't the only one I've taken a liking too (; You're very interesting, Eddy. The reason I wanted your number was so that I could learn more about you. I don't run into people like you every day.

I already knew her reason from her thoughts, but hearing her actually say it only accentuated the openness I already knew to be a part of who she was. It was almost laughable what she said at the end though. I had no doubt that she hadn't met anyone else like me. Not many people encountered vampires on a day to day basis. Our two species just weren't meant to mingle.

But, interesting? She thought me _interesting_? Nothing could really be further from the truth. I didn't know what she expected to learn from me, but it wouldn't be much. Her hope was a vain one. If I eliminated all things vampiric, I wouldn't be much of anything. All that would remain was that very small glimmer of my humanity which Bella managed to call forth. Even that was slight though, and so frequently silenced by my selfishness.

And Vitalia had taken a_liking_ to me. That was perhaps the worst of it. What she liked was that danger her subconscious undoubtedly detected, that part of her which sought and flourished on a good thrill.

**Edward:**I imagine not. Still, don't expect to learn much from me. I'm not a very open individual, and those things I am willing to share wouldn't be of much interest to you. Anyway though, I'm going to bed. Goodnight.

I dutifully keyed out a final response before closing my phone determinedly. I rose to set it back on the night stand, then lowered myself beside my beloved and returned my arm to encircle her waist. I breathed her in, that glorious and delicious scent of her, while my eyes scanned and studied her face.

I heard my phone vibrate, but I forced myself to ignore it. Vitalia was undoubtedly arguing against what I had said, as most everyone seemed to do. Everything about vampires drew the human species towards us. We were interesting and attractive to them and, try as I might to dissuade them – my own beloved Bella included – it always seemed a wasted effort. They were a very susceptible race.

…

Bella stirred at about nine in the morning, Charlie had already come and gone, and I looked on eagerly as those soft, brown eyes opened to greet mine. She smiled tiredly and then shifted closer, looking to the blanket as if it were somehow offending her.

I chuckled a little before thrusting it aside and allowing her to scoot towards me and nuzzle her head against my chest. I lifted a hand through her hair and gently stroked her dark strands before delivering a soft kiss upon her forehead.

"How did you sleep, my love?"

"Fine," she said before sighing. "I wish I didn't have to sleep so long though."

"It's important. I envy your ability to sleep at all."

"Yes, but…" She trailed off and I glanced down at her while she fiddled with my shirt nervously.

"But?"

"…I wish I could be awake with you."

It warmed me to hear such an admission from her, even if they were misplaced, and I held her just a little tighter.

She eased into me and released another sigh, and there was a silent moment before she continued in a mumbled set of words.

"You know, if I was…_like_ you…I could."

I tensed at the turn in conversation as it brewed in me a frustration I always felt whenever she brought it up. I thought I had made it clear to her already that I was not even considering doing that to her. That I _couldn't_. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply. The times in which she endeavored the topic were scarce but, whenever she did, without fail, we'd end up arguing over it.

And I really wasn't in the mood to argue.

So, in an attempt to thwart her, I merely looked to her with a smirk and decided to try and distract her. I don't know if she was ever _really_distracted from what she really wanted to discuss, but I'm sure she recognized how stubbornly I was against obliging her that conversation.

"You should start getting ready. You have a morning shift, correct?"

She was silent another long while, before she slowly nodded and sat up, slightly frowning but looking to me as if she had been expecting that response from me. Attempting a smile, she let me sit up and kiss her, before she stood and gathered her things for a shower.

I watched her go and then liedd back down, staring up at the ceiling again and trying to keep myself calm. Bella just had no idea what she was even asking. It bothered me that she was so willing to throw away her life for me, though I didn't exactly blame her as much as I blamed myself. I was the cause of it. I had intruded on her life and was now causing her to feel those unnatural things.

I absently glanced across the room as I heard the shower head switch on, and my eyes fell on my phone. I remembered that I hadn't read Vitalia's final response. Considering that I was going to look eventually and that there was nothing better I could be doing at the moment anyway, I reached over and flipped the device open.

**Vitalia:**Ooh, mysterious ;P I'm glad you're not open, it just makes it so much more fun for me to take on this challenge! And let me be the judge of what interests me and what doesn't. Sorry, but that's up to me, Eddy. You don't get any say there. Night! Talk to you later (; And don't you think for a second that I actually believe you're going to bed, stalker. I know better than that.

Inadvertently, she'd seen through even _that_ lie. I smiled slightly, and reread the message. A part of me felt a little bad then as I considered some of the things I had been thinking the night prior. However, I still needed to really consider the matter before continuing to converse with her.

Thoughts returning to the context of the message, I found it interesting that, rather than seeming to feel any frustration at being told how closed off I was, it instead fueled Vitalia. She almost appeared to _prefer_it. How strange. I'd never considered it like that before. With Bella…it was always so frustrating that I couldn't read her thoughts – that she was so often closed off.

Considering it as a challenge though…maybe, inadvertently, that's what I'd actually been doing all along. Maybe that was part of the draw she had on me. It had been the very first thing I noticed about her, after all. It had made me curious and I had pursued that curiosity. It had led me towards my fascination with her.

Interesting.

Predictably, Vitalia had argued against my claim that my revelations would be uninteresting to her, and I found myself content with the knowledge that she was at least _somewhat_ on the normal scale of things. Still, her forceful refusal left hardly any room for me to refute it.

She was right, after all. Only she could determine such a thing, but I held firmly to the belief that her determination would align with my proclamation.

…

After I drove Bella to work, I received a phone call from Jasper. It was a little strange to me, as he rarely ever sought me out, and so I answered my phone with a bit of caution. Was something wrong with Alice? I voiced my concern, but he hastily assured me that she was fine.

However, it turned out that it _did_ pertain to Alice, and I smiled and shook my head as I listened to his explanation. Their anniversary was in two days and he wanted to _try_ surprising her this time.

I felt for him, I really did. It was virtually impossible to surprise Alice with anything and I knew that one of the joys of gift-giving was being able to offer the receiver something they didn't expect.

I agreed to try my best to help him and told him to meet me outside of the hospital in town. I had to meet with Carlisle about some tests I wanted him to run. Bella had developed an allergic reaction the prior day when we'd gone to our field, and he said he would aid me in determining the cause so as to avoid it in the future.

Jasper was a little hesitant – always being very cautious when it came to hospitals due to his strained control – but he mentioned that he figured it would be alright as long as he was outside and downwind of the emergency bay.

I ended the call with him and my eyes lingered on my phone another moment longer as I considered Vitalia's last text. I felt the urge to respond, but I hadn't made up my mind whether to continue our conversation or not.

Returning the device to my pocket determinedly, I kept my eyes fixed on the road and my mind on my destination. Indecision was a curse of mine, obviously.

About five minutes later – a route that would've taken at lease fifteen for those abiding by speed limits – I pulled into a space near the front of the hospital and then made my way towards the main entrance with a leisurely stroll.

The ladies at the front desk knew me and the rest of my family by now, and they often disregarded protocol and procedure for us. That natural charm of ours was to blame for their cooperation. I sauntered up to them and greeted each by name in a smooth, cascading voice.

"Good morning, Linda," my eyes shifted, meeting those of the woman standing beside her, "Annie," my eyes shifted again, "and Suzie."

They smiled and greeted me in turn, their thoughts at once flustered. I withheld a smirk at their predictable reactions and continued.

"I'm here to meet with my father. Is it alright if I go back and see him?"

"He's with a patient at the moment," Linda replied, as she was by far the most practical of the three. "But, it should be alright. He's just finishing up. He's in exam room 204."

"Thank you," I responded as she handed me a visitor's badge, my tone containing only utmost sincerity and appreciation.

Then, I turned, felt their eyes on me, and made my way to the elevator. There was only an elderly man standing there beside me and, as the doors closed and we journeyed in a brief silence, I considered how I, if nature had been allowed to run its course, would look something like he did right now.

It was how I was supposed to look.

The doors opened and I stepped past him quietly. He was observing me with a look of confusion, and I wondered if he recognized the older spirit inside of me. Well, whatever spirit there was to find, at least.

I ignored his stare and continued down the hall, redirecting my focus and trying not to hone in on any of the pained and anxious clutters of concerned thoughts around me.

A heavy scent of chemicals and the dull metallic of old blood invaded my nose as I continued forward, my senses all a little hyperactive within the enclosed building. Hospitals were usually rather unpleasant to visit. I was sure Carlisle had to be at least partially immune to it by now. He'd spent almost all of his life practicing medicine.

Before I reached the designated exam room, my phone vibrated and I paused to look down at the message. For a fleeting moment, I had thought maybe it was Vitalia, demanding I reply or accusing me of spending too much time thinking, but I saw Jasper's name.

**Jasper:**Alright. I'm outside whenever you're ready. Don't know if you can hear my mind or not so, just in case, here you go.

I could, if I concentrated on his mind through the hundreds thrumming around me, but I appreciated him making it easier for me. I keyed a quick response in affirmation, before placing the device back into my pocket and continuing forward. I frowned at my initial reaction though. Had I been _hoping_the text would be from her? Why did it even matter to me?

Again, I felt a little disconcerted. I didn't know what to think or what the right thing to do was. I needed to focus my attention on Bella, and I just couldn't allow anyone else to distract me, even fractionally, from her. Right?

It was frustrating though because, try as I might to ignore it, I was still curious to learn more from Vitalia. The image of her with that flower in her hand, her eyes looking in wonder at that simple, ordinary thing, kept replaying in my thoughts.

Why?

That unnerved me most of all. She shouldn't be on my mind when it was far better occupied with thoughts of Bella. The constant back and forth was putting me into a very uptight sort of mood.

I reached the exam room and tried to push aside my ponderings until later. Right now, I could focus on the tests that I needed Carlisle to run, and the expedition Jasper and I were about to endeavor.

However, no sooner had I succeeded in partially distracting myself, than the thoughts of Carlisle and his patient invaded my mind. '_His patient_…' my eyes lifted to peer in through the horizontal window. It was Vitalia.

What was she doing here?

'_Yeah, that antiseptic kinda burns a little,'_she was thinking.

'_This girl,'_Carlisle noted as he continued his application of the ointment onto her shoulder, where I saw a rather deep-looking gash. _'She looks a little beaten up.'_He frowned. _'This might need stitches.'_

So, she had gotten herself hurt. Again. Of _course_she did. And now she was here and making things difficult for me. I breathed in deeply and debated whether or not to enter. Usually, when Carlisle was with a patient, I would at least knock or simply wait to enter.

'_Would it be wise to-'_

Not unlike what she often seemed to do, I cut off my train of thought and thrust the door open, a little annoyed with my own head for being so fickle. It was just back and forth all the time without reprieve. Perhaps entering had been a little – if not _very_ – impulsive of me, but I didn't care. I'd had enough for one day. I had come to meet with Carlisle, and this little girl's presence was not going to stop me.

They both looked to me as soon as I stepped into the room, and my eyes fell to Vitalia. She was simply sitting there on the hospice bed, unassuming and unaware of the frustration she was causing me.

'_Edward,'_my father began to admonish. _'I'm with a patient. '_

But then he must have caught the recognition from her as she continued to stare right back at me. She grinned, a strangely knowing sort of smile, before her thoughts revealed why.

'_Aha! I knew it, they're related! Is he another brother or something? Those eyes. So weird, but they're unmistakable.'_

"Eddy," she greeted me, before motioning to my father. _"_I had a suspicion that you were related to the good doctor here."

"Oh, really?" I couldn't help but ask, the sarcasm heavy. "And the name '_Dr. Cullen_' didn't give it away?"

My father's thoughts again reached me. _'Ah, so you know her. Is her family the one Emmett told us about yesterday?'_I wasn't at all surprised that Emmett had spoken of the event to everyone, and I subtly nodded to confirm his inquiry.

"My mind didn't go there," Vitalia shrugged in answer, my tone not effecting her in the slightest. "You're just 'Eddy' to me." She then looked between us again, "so, is he another brother of yours? My dad mentioned that you have two."

"I'm his father," Carlisle smiled kindly at her. "Adoptive, that is."

And, at that, I suddenly felt on edge for some inexplicable reason. That explanation would definitely be questioned by Vitalia. Even considering it now, it seemed very outlandish.

Her brows furrowed, and I watched as she looked deep into his eyes. _'Adoptive father? But…those eyes. It doesn't make any sense. Wait…oh! Of course.'_

'_She's very perceptive, Edward,'_Carlisle silently stated, a warning in the tone of it.

Vitalia's eyes quickly shifted back to mine, "you wear contacts, don't you? All of you. That's still really weird, but kinda funny too."

'_Wonder why they do that,'_she thought to herself, but her thoughts were cut off by me before she could allow them further study.

"That's right," I answered smoothly to the girl.

'…_interesting conclusion,'_Carlisle silently remarked.

She chuckled, and her thoughts continued. _'And he looks so serious while saying it too. Hm…adoptive father. I wonder what happened to his parents. That'd be kinda sad if he lost them. Maybe these people just…all want to look like a real family. Maybe that's why they do it.'_

"Are all of you adopted then?" She asked.

I nodded.

She smiled and then looked to Carlisle, "well, that was very nice of you, sir."

He nodded and graciously accepted her compliment with a smile.

'_He's like running an orphanage of golden eyed people,'_she quipped.

I had to resist chuckling at that despite myself. This girl…her thoughts were as strange as ever. My mouth fought to form a smile as I watched Carlisle finish cleaning her wound. I looked to her face then while her attention was on him, and tilted my head as I considered her.

She, once again, had made her own assumption, I had gone along with it, and then she accepted it without further question. It was an easy sort of arrangement. She also…didn't seem to be holding my failing to respond to her text against me.

What was the harm in simply conversing with her? It would give me something to do during those times which I usually only spent waiting around. I could continue considering all of this further, but I knew I'd only be keeping up the same indecision with myself. I _needed_ to decide what to do here.

Bella had been the one to take on a second job, taking away from time we could've spent together, and so why couldn't I enjoy myself during her absence? I usually drove myself mad with impatience, and so perhaps this would help to alleviate that. It might even aid me in clearing my head so that I could actually make a sound decision where my darling was concerned.

Convincing myself that this would eventually help Bella, aided me in being more accepting of the idea of speaking with Vitalia. My smile widened, and I arrived at my decision.

My posture more relaxed, I crossed my arms and waited until the girl glanced to me. When she did, I indicated her shoulder.

"So, what happened there?" I teased. "Did the bear fight back?"

I could feel my father's eyes on me as my tone and expression shifted. His thoughts were somewhat confused and a little surprised. However, he didn't stare for long, and dutifully returned to his work. I suppose I couldn't really blame him for the reaction, as I had never been a very social sort of person. The first individual outside of our family that I had bonded with outside of my family was Bella.

He wasn't the only one wondering why Vitalia was an exception to that.

The girl grinned widely at me. _'Hm…he seemed a little tense coming in here. Has a lot on his mind, I guess. Like always. Still, he looks a little better now. That's good. I was hoping what I said last night didn't offend him or anything.'_

My smile softened at that, and I again felt a bit of remorse at having abruptly ended our conversation. Of course she'd wondered that. It was definitely a logical explanation for my behavior.

But, she still didn't mention it aloud, and instead responded with a wink. "I wish, but sadly no. No bears involved. _This,__" She slightly lifted her shoulder,_ "is from my dad's skinning knife. He was swinging it around, showing off in front of mom and I walked by and got clipped by it. She gave him a pretty harsh lecture afterwards, but I felt kinda bad for him. Daddy can get pretty down on himself when he messes up."

"Ah," I nodded, watching the scenario in her mind and shaking my head. It was so typical of that family. I could definitely understand Diego's feelings on that matter though. Making a mistake like that, hurting someone you cared for, was one of the very worst things. "Are they here with you?"

"They went to lunch down the road. Told me just to call when I'm ready to leave." She sighed and looked to her shoulder, "my mom doesn't really like hospitals, she prefers all those natural medications and remedies and things, but this baby here was pretty deep and daddy thought I might need to get it stitched."

She looked back to me, "and what are _you_ doing here? Barging in like this."

"I'm just here to speak with my father," I responded easily. "Nothing too serious."

"Hm," she mused as a smirk formed. "Something top-secret, no doubt. Classified, stalker business."

At that, I swore I saw a fleeting smile form across Carlisle's face in reaction to her comment. I think it it's safe to say that my family had been a bit concerned with my behavior when I'd first taken an interest in Bella. I suppose it was understandable too. I just…couldn't help myself. Even I'd questioned my own sanity.

"I don't know how you're always so right about these things," I played along.

'_Finding the humor in something like that,'_Carlisle was thinking in continued surprise. _'That's unlike you, Edward. It's…a good change though.'_I could tell he was trying to be delicate about this and, now that he'd pointed that out, I realized he was right.

Usually, I would feel a little annoyed with others calling out my thoughts, just because I didn't always want to acknowledge them myself. However, Vitalia's way of approaching it was different. She wasn't calling me out on it to reprimand or tease me. Hell, she wasn't even_serious_ about it. She simply didn't realize how right she was.

And, for some reason, it encouraged me to play along too. Somehow, it made it a little easier for me to deal with that shortcoming of mine.

"Well, young lady," Carlisle said to her. "I think we can get away with not stitching this, aright? I'm just going to use some surgical tape to hold it in place and put a bandage over it for you."

"Really?" She asked, looking to him excitedly. "That's great! I didn't want to have to worry about stitches."

'_Talk about a serious inconvenience,'_she thought, and I smiled as I heard that. It wasn't as if it'd be _much_ of one, realistically. She was dramatic.

Carlisle chuckled softly before focusing on the bandaging process.

Vitalia winced briefly, before breathing out and relaxing herself. My eyes noted the scratches along her arm from where she'd fallen, and I shook my head again. She was destined for disaster, and it would not be of my doing.

Once my father was finished, he stood and smiled down at her, "well, it was lovely to meet you, Miss Santi."

"And you," she nodded. "Kind of freaking me out that I've been running into Eddy so much though."

Carlisle nodded, "yes, I'd say it is a little strange. Life's just funny that way sometimes."

"Mhm, it is," Vitalia winked up at him. "It has a sense of humor."

I just watched their exchange silently. It certainly did. It had a rather cruel sense of humor sometimes too. I wondered then if she'd ever been exposed to any sort of tragedy. Her approach to life was so positive, that it didn't seem at all tarnished by misfortune.

_This_ was what I wanted for Bella. This was what she deserved. To live a normal life, like this girl, to enjoy every stage of it. I was the only one holding her back from that.

"Well, you're free to go," Carlisle said to Vitalia before motioning to the door. "Will you be paying upfront or do we need to send an invoice somewhere?"

"My parents will probably just pay for it when they get here," she answered. "I'll wait outside and have a smoke or something."

'_Oh dear,'_Carlisle thought at that. It was his usual reaction to hearing that his patients smoked, especially teens.

Which, for that matter, Vitalia was not even eighteen. I wondered if maybe her parents had bought a pack of cigarettes for her. No, correction, her _father_. Her mother was far more sensible. Smoking though…it was extremely harmful to the health of human beings. It didn't exactly surprise me that she had formed such a hazardous habit though.

'_Oops,'_Vitalia's eyes widened a little at seeing Carlisle's reaction. _'I'm underage, probably shouldn't have said that. And he's a doctor too. Damn.'_

"I see," my father replied, smiling to her. "That works then. I'll just notify the nurse in reception then.'

"Cool," Vitalia nodded, relieved, before gathering her things, and then hopping off the bed. She smiled to Carlisle a final time before approaching me and lifting a finger to give the side of my head a little flick.

I stiffened, not having expected the contact, and she winked.

"Stop thinking so much," she said. "It's taking you an awfully long time to respond to my text."

I smiled widely at her. So, she just couldn't help bringing it up, after all. However, being who she was, she had approached it in a jesting manner.

"I'll work on that," I responded, before looking to her with a forced expression of sincerity, for I already knew that the words I would next speak would go unheeded. "And _you_ stay out of trouble."

"Ha!" She laughed, "Right. Me? I prefer to stay _in_trouble, Eddy. I love it."

And her eyes were gleaming as she voiced that. Even the very thought gave her a thrill. The girl was beyond ridiculous. However, it made me so curious. Curious to explore and study that mindset of hers. I didn't really understand why I was so drawn to it.

In the back of my mind, I noticed that Carlisle was busying his mind with an inventory of his supplies. Was he also distracting his thoughts as Emmett had done? Did I even _want_to know what they were thinking?

"I suppose you're a lost cause then," I replied to Vitalia, that liveliness in her eyes again capturing my attention. It was a remarkable thing.

"Pretty much," she said before lifting her hand in a half-wave. "I'll see you later."

"Goodbye," I said with a nod.

"Bye, doc!" She hollered to my father, and he bid her a parting word in turn.

Then, she turned and left, her parting thoughts mostly centered on amusing self-anecdotes.

"Edward," Carlisle called out to me, eyes watching me closely. I wondered why he was looking at me that way, but he offered me nothing, only held out a hand for the vial I held. A vial of blood that I had asked Bella to procure for me. It was sealed tight so as to aid me in resisting it.

I blinked and looked down at it, having briefly forgotten.

I handed it to him with a slight frown. Why had I forgotten that, and why did it not bother me as much as it should? My father eyed me another moment before turning to prepare the testing slides. I looked away and to the wall across from me.

It was silent, save for the steady hum of inner voices throughout the hospital, until I heard my name, and I honed in on whichever mind it had been voiced from.

Jasper.

'_-hope Edward hurries up. I mostly just smell antiseptic, but I'm still picking up on the blood from her wound. Don't know why she has to stand next to me. Oh, good. She's lighting a cigarette, that'll help. Not that it's a good thing that she's smoking. Maybe that's selfish of me.'_

My eyes widened and then I closed them to instead see through the eyes of my brother as he stared at Vitalia, who had just exited the main entrance and sat on a corner of the walkway ledge, not ten feet from where Jasper was standing. She smiled at him, before lifting her cigarette and lighting it. She inhaled deeply and a cloud of smoke left her lips.

'_That really hits the spot,' _she thought.

I relaxed a little, only just realizing I had tensed at all, and prepared to listen to whatever exchange might take place between Jasper and Vitalia. I suspected it wouldn't take long for her to try and strike up a conversation, no matter how unnerving Jasper might be to most.

If she wasn't at all uneasy around me, Emmett, or Carlisle, I surmised that, if she was to ever feel any form of anxiety from a vampire, it would be from him.

Furthermore…through Jasper's mind, he might be able to give me some insight into the girl's actual feelings; confirm if there really was any fear coming from her. I was beginning to wonder if it was just nonexistent in her.

It was going to be a very interesting thing to listen to.

* * *

><p><em>To be continued…<em>

**A/N: **I'm very enthusiastic about the next chapter. I love Jasper's character ;) Just a little a teaser for you there ;P It will be from Vitalia's perspective too, so, like Edward, you can gain some further insight into her character. I'll update as soon as I can!


	4. Steps of Two

**A/N: **Many thanks to all my reviewers/followers! You're all wonderful ;) This chapter is primarily from Vi's POV, but I couldn't resist adding some insight from Edward. There's just too much that he'd be reacting to. Enjoy!

* * *

><p><strong>Earthshine<strong>

Chapter IV

"Steps of Two"

...

"_Old timidity has disappeared, and is replaced by silent, quaint fun, with which his face twinkles all over, as he listens."_

_-Thomas Hughes_

_..._

**[Vitalia]**

I took another drag from the cigarette between my lips and held it there in my lungs a moment before exhaling. It really was nice. The ache in my shoulder was starting to go away a little, and I smiled as I thought about my conversation with Eddy.

He was such a strange guy. I really didn't think I'd met anyone like him. Ever. I don't know what he'd been all tense about when he first barged into the exam room, but he looked at me like I was a raincloud when he'd been expecting a sunny day.

I chuckled and shook my head. Crazy. Maybe _that's_ what he was. I also couldn't really describe how weird it was to be running into him everywhere. Hell, I was almost convinced sometimes that he really _was_ a stalker. The thing that made me question it though, was that he always looked equally surprised to see me.

Not exactly the reaction one would expect from a stalker. _'Could be a really excellent actor, of course.' _It was a funny thought, but I didn't buy it. Something in his eyes just made me feel so sure that his surprise was genuine. Couldn't really explain why. It was just something I knew.

He did intrigue me though, and I was glad he'd agreed to exchange numbers. I wanted to learn about him. He was so closed off, always seeming to have his guard up. It challenged me to try and do my best to get past that, to explore the mystery of him.

I was really excited about it. He didn't seem like the type of person who let himself have fun, and so I, being a person who didn't like to keep things _serious_, figured I could maybe help him out with that. Life was meant to be enjoyed. It was just sad when it couldn't be.

I lifted my cigarette and breathed in nice and deep then glanced over at the person standing across the walkway. Speaking of strange and mysterious, who was _he_? It looked like it was taking him a lot of effort to even be, well, _standing_ there.

Maybe he was going to be a future patient at the hospital? Maybe he was nervous about going inside? Maybe he'd just received some _really _bad news? There was just no way of really knowing.

But…there was also something about him that unnerved me a little bit. He was intimidating. There was like…a certain danger to him, just as there'd been with Eddy.

He looked at me, and it was kind of ironic because of my latest thought, but I noticed instantly that his eyes were gold. I smirked. So, he was another relative. I was just running into them everywhere! Was he waiting on Eddy then? Why was he waiting out here? He looked impatient. Maybe he just liked the fresh air.

I looked away and flicked the tip of my cigarette.

There was a long silence then, and I glanced to the guy again to see he looked kind of indecisive. Was he wondering what to say to me? I thought that was pretty amusing, and I only briefly considered putting him out of his 'misery' and striking up a conversation myself.

But nope. I decided to see what he might say instead. It was always interesting to hear what would come out of a person's mouth first.

I smiled at him and then looked away again. There. Maybe that'd help him along a little bit.

Lifting the cigarette to my lips, I was about to inhale when the guy finally spoke.

"Those things could kill you," he voiced with a recognizable drawl.

I grinned and excitedly looked to him. "Oh yeah! Eddy told me he had a brother from Texas. I'd know that accent anywhere."

His eyes widened a little bit, "you know Edward?" But, then he seemed to remember something. "Oh, right. Emmett told me about you. You're the huntin' family."

"Mhm, that's right," I said with a proud nod.

I saw him fight what looked to be a grin. "Well…congratulations on beatin' Edward in your race. It's rare." I got the impression from his tone that there was some sort of poetic justice thing he was getting out of this.

"Thanks," I winked. "I tricked him."

"That's usually how it has to be."

He still looked a little uncomfortable, and I wondered if he was much of a conversationalist. I didn't get the impression that he was. Still, I was proud of him for speaking first, if it really was a difficult thing to for him to do. He looked like he was probably a little socially awkward.

A friendly smile crossed my face then. Well, I hoped it was friendly, at least. I wanted him to feel comfortable around me. "I'm Vitalia."

He glanced to me, shifting his eyes a little back and forth, before nodding and lifting a finger to his forehead in greeting, a greeting that reminded me of something Rhett Butler might do. A Southern gentleman's courtesy. "Jasper Hale."

"Nice to meet you, Jasper!" I exclaimed. I just _loved_ meeting new people. There really was nothing more interesting to me.

He smirked a little uneasily. "…yeah, you too." He shifted his eyes again, before finally settling them on me. "So, you're from Texas too?"

"That's right," I said, pleased we had some common ground here. "San Antonio. And you're from Houston, right?"

"Right," he nodded, and his eyes looked kind of distant. It was strange. "Been forever since I've been there." There was like a fondness he had for his home state, but also something else. Like something was keeping him from really enjoying it. Weird. "San Antonio…" his voice had an edge I couldn't really describe. "It's…interestin'. With the Alamo and…everythin'."

"Yeah, it is," I winked. How could I make him feel more comfortable talking about this? "Craziest weather there is. Basically just really hot all year round. All except for January. It's humid, and impossible to predict too. One day it'll be cloudy and clear, and the next we're hit with a violent thunderstorm."

He smirked again, "I remember that." The way he said it too, made it seem like it'd been such a long time ago. He couldn't be older than twenty though, at the very latest. Did he go to High School too?

"I think that's what I like most about it," I said. "It does its own thing. It's untamed and independent."

He was silent again before continuing, eyes shifting to stare ahead, like he was seeing the place for himself. "I liked…the landscape. It's…really beautiful."

I grinned. It was wonderful to talk about the things one liked. There was something so vulnerable about the guy right now and _that _was beautiful to me. _'This person's pretty deep too. Just like Eddy.'_

Jasper blinked, and looked to me before so obviously trying to change the subject. "You don't have an accent though."

"Nope," I said with a shake of my head. "I'm from the east coast originally. Well, east-south. South Carolina."

"Ah," Jasper said, a wry looking smile crossing his face. "So, not a _true_ born and raised Texan then."

I stuck my nose in the air, playing along with him a little. "Am I an insult to you, sir?"

"Maybe a lil'," he responded before looking away and then shaking his head. "But, not really. It's nice…talkin' about it with someone."

I smiled again and looked to my cigarette. I had sort of forgot about it and now it was almost burned away. I lifted it and got about two or three more drags from it, before leaning down and snuffing it out in the dirt. I flicked it a few feet away, smiled at the distance I'd achieved and then looked over again to see Jasper staring.

"What?" I asked with a little shrug. He was probably going to say something else about my smoking. A lot of people did. I figured that, maybe, that's one the reasons I liked to do it. I had devilish little urges to be rebellious sometimes. A little something I inherited from daddy dearest.

"Aren't you a lil' young?" He asked somewhat lamely. "To be…smokin', I mean. How were you able to buy it?"

I chuckled. Yep. I'd been right. Still, his discomfort with even calling me out on it was pretty funny. I winked and smiled sort of impishly. "_Purchasing_ isn't the only way to pick up a pack of smokes."

His eyes widened, "you mean you…_stole_ it?"

I laughed again, before shaking my head. "Not exactly. I just left the money on the shelf."

"…oh," Jasper responded, before looking like he was trying to decide whether that was still a bad thing or not.

I just grinned at him widely before looking behind me at the hospital doors as I wondered what he was doing out here. "Are you just waiting on Eddy?"

"Yeah," he replied, looking grateful to be changing the subject. "He's going to help me out with somethin'."

"Ooh," I said, interested. "Is this 'something' a secret?"

"Well, sort of," he smiled, and it looked so fond on his face. "It's for my…girlfriend. Alice. Our anniversary's tomorrow."

"Aww," I responded immediately. How sweet. Just looking at his face, I could see how much the girl meant to him. "How long have you been together?"

His smile widened a little bit. "A long time. Feels like forever. But…I guess, it's really been about…five years."

"Wow," I said approvingly. "That _is _a long time. I think my longest relationship lasted about, let's see, two months? Yeah."

"You can hardly even call that a relationship," he said, and I realized he was trying to tease me.

I chuckled and then nodded in agreement, "you're right. It wasn't much of one." The guy's face crossed my mind, that stupid smirking face, and I immediately got rid of the image. I didn't like thinking about it, and I determinedly kept my smile in place. I wasn't about to let my ex get me down.

I tilted my head, "you know what you're going to get her?"

He actually chuckled at that. "No. She's not the easiest one to surprise. At all."

"Hm," I said. "That's a shame." I tried to think of an idea for him. Something unpredictable maybe. "Well…why don't you just take her do something instead? Just, you know, go out on the town and see what jumps out at you. Don't plan anything."

"Well, I don't know about that," he said. "There isn't much to do around here."

"Sure there is," I protested. "There's _always _something to do, no matter where you are."

He just stared at me then, and I really didn't know what to call the look he was giving me. It was sort of similar to how Eddy would just sometimes stare, though it wasn't nearly as…well, _intense_ when Jasper did it.

"Like what?" He asked, seeming genuinely curious.

I lifted a finger to my chin in thought as I tilted my head, eyes lifting to the cloudy sky for inspiration. The climate in Forks was very different than what I was used to. It was very pretty, and had a sort of enchanting quality, but every now and then, I definitely missed home. I missed the sun.

Texas, the land of the proud. There were _lots_ of things to do there. Maybe Jasper and Alice could try for some Texan cliché. A really Southern activity of some kind. _'Let's see,'_I said to myself mentally. _'They could cook some barbeque, or go horseback riding, or-'_

Aha! I had it. A brief image flashed in my mind, and I stood and faced the guy. "Hey, you know how to two-step?"

He immediately looked a little wary when I stood, and I thought I saw him shrink back a bit. Yep. Definitely socially awkward. "…yes, but it's been awhile," he responded carefully.

"Hm," I said again. "I'm not the best at explaining things, so you want to try it out? See if you remember?"

"What?" He looked completely stunned. "With you?"

I shrugged, "sure." I then winked, "every girl loves dancing, right? I'm _sure_ she'd love it."

"…yes, Alice likes dancin'." He shook his head, "but I don't think this's the best idea."

"Ah," I said knowingly. "Think she might not like it?" It was no secret that some people were just the jealous type, and I definitely didn't want to be causing him any trouble.

"N-no, that's not it," he said uncomfortably eyes moving towards the entrance of the hospital sort of desperately. "I just…don't know if it'd be…uhm, I don't know, a wise thing to do."

He was really struggling with his words, and something about what he _wasn't_ saying unnerved me again. Actually, now that I thought about it, I got even _more_ of an impression of danger from him than I did from Eddy. It hadn't really gone away either.

Again though…like Eddy, I saw a lot of good in this person. There wasn't any reason to be afraid of him. I couldn't even really identify why I _should_ feel scared. It was kind of just like…an automatic response that I couldn't explain.

But, I had never been one to turn away from danger, and more than that, Jasper seemed like a good guy. I decided he definitely had to be. He was really sweet and sort of shy.

I smiled to try and assure him, "it'll be fine. If you still think it's a bad idea we can just stop, alright? Come on, just try it out."

I extended my hand, and my smile widened. He looked to me and then back at the door. He was really weighing his options, and even though it confused me, I decided to just be patient and try not to question any of it too much. Whatever I didn't know about him was probably for the best.

Weirdly, his eyes looked to my shoulder, at the bandage there, and then he stepped closer, seeming to test the waters – at least that's what it looked like – before slowly crossing toward where I stood. He was so tense though, and I decided then that I couldn't exactly say Eddy was tense anymore when comparing him to his brother.

"If I…suddenly run away or somethin'," he said to me, and his voice was a little strained. "Don't question it too much, alright?"

I shrugged, "you're just weird. I get it. It's fine with me." I lifted my hand and placed it in his. I furrowed my brows a little though when I felt how cold he was, and couldn't help but feel that intimidation increase when he came closer.

Seriously…what was with this guy? Or, actually, their whole golden-eyed family? Something really was a little off about them. But I liked it. Whatever it was, it made them really interesting and intriguing. I smiled and lifted my hand to his shoulder.

How could I make him ease up though? Let's see…Ooh!

"Tell me about Alice," I suggested, and the effect was almost instantaneous as his eyes softened. Man…it reminded me so much of the way daddy looked at my mom. There was so much affection there. "You're in love with her, right?" I prompted.

He really relaxed when I brought her up, and he very lightly put a hand around my waist.

"Yes," He nodded. "Ever since I first saw her."

"Ooh, love at first sight," I winked. "Now,_that's_ really rare."

"It is," Jasper replied. "She's…always real upbeat. Energetic and…spunky. My lil' monster."

I chuckled at that. "I love interesting pet names."

"Well, it suits her best," he smiled.

I nodded and then remembered the dancing. "Alright, well, let's see if you remember how to do this."

"Right," he said, seeming to remember too. He slowly, a little uncertainly, moved his feet in the correct set of steps, and I followed along the way my daddy taught me.

I grinned, "There you go. You seem to have the hang of it."

He looked very proud of himself when I said that and began moving a little more surely. "It's…kinda weird without music."

"Yeah, well," I shrugged, "what can you do?" I remembered that I had a few songs on my phone, but didn't really feel like getting it out. I felt like I'd made some real progress with Jasper. He seemed a lot more comfortable.

"I think," he tried again, tone more thoughtful. "That Alice really might like this." He nodded, "so, thank you."

"No problem," I said. "Be sure and tell Eddy so that he can tell me how it goes."

"Oh, right," Jasper nodded. "You two have been talkin'." He looked uncertain again, and his steps slowed a bit. "What's…goin' on with you two anyway? I mean, Edward isn't usually very friendly."

"Hm," I narrowed my eyes a little and smiled teasingly. "You know, I don't really think that _you_ usually are either though, are you?"

He looked stunned again, but then slowly nodded, sort of enlightened-looking now. "That's…a good point."

"There we go," I winked. "But, to answer your question, I just really wanted to get to know him. He's one of the most interesting people I've ever met."

"Well…he's interestin' alright," Jasper drawled, even smiling a little sarcastically. "But, he's definitely not an easy one to get to know. Again, neither am I, and so I guess you could say that it takes one to know one."

"And I like the challenge of that," I said determinedly. "I've got all summer."

"Then back to Texas?"

"Yep," I nodded. "Sadly, we'll be going our separate ways. I'm kind of used to it though. My family moves around and travels a lot, so I've picked up plenty of friends along the way. Guess you could say that I'm pretty used to goodbyes. It always sucks, of course, but I have my family, and that's what matters most."

His smiled turned very genuine at that, and he nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right….nothin' can really replace family." Then he extended his arm, surprising me, but I went with it and did a little spin.

He stepped away then and slightly bowed, another customary Southern gesture. I grinned and curtsied, and even if I was wearing shorts, sort of defeating the whole purpose of a curtsy, it was still fun to pretend.

"I think she's going to love it, Tex," I said, coming up with a nickname for him.

He seemed surprised by the name, but nodded. "Yeah, I hope so." He paused then before continuing. "And, by the way, I think you really could get Edward to open up." He smiled, "and…I also think he could use a friend like you."

I could tell it took a lot for him to say all that, and I definitely appreciated it. I could see he really meant it too. "Thanks," I answered, smiling brightly before winking, "Of course, I'm also definitely willing to be friends with all of you, and I'm interested in meeting your lady sometime."

"Well, maybe you can convince Edward to introduce you to everyone."

"Ooh, think he'd do that?"

"I don't know," he responded sincerely, and I realized then that Jasper was a really sincere person. Eddy definitely always looked like he was keeping some big secret, and didn't always seem like he was telling the truth. He played along with things, but never really answered my questions.

Still, I _did_ sort of think that added to his intrigue, and I really enjoyed him playing along. Jasper didn't seem like he was the type to play along with much because he was so cautious and uncomfortable.

Bottom line…this whole family was just _so_interesting!

"Well, I'll try my best to be convincing," I said.

He smiled, and then I heard a car horn from beside me. I jumped a bit, before laughing and shaking my head. Daddy. He smirked and waved, and I turned to Jasper. "Well, I've gotta go. It was great chatting with you, Tex!"

He smiled again and waved, "yeah, you too. See you later. Maybe."

"Maybe," I agreed with a wink as I turned and descended the steps towards where the Camaro was waiting. I knocked on the window, and my mom rolled it down. "Hey, uhm, I just told them we'd pay upfront."

"Did you need stitches?" Mom asked, looking worriedly to my shoulder.

I shook my head. "Nope. Clean cut."

"Ooh, good," she smiled widely.

"Well, get in, squirt," my papa bear said before climbing out. "I'll be right back."

He sauntered around the car, nodded to Jasper, and then I watched as he disappeared inside. I climbed into my seat, shut the door and leaned forward to ask my mom how lunch had gone. She said it had been great, and that the place reminded her a little of the diner she used to go to as a kid.

I smiled warmly and then looked to the window and up at the hospital. Eddy was in there somewhere, and I wondered if he was actually going to send me a response to my text.

My phone notification sound went off then – a cute, little wind chime sounding thing – and I looked down and saw the message was from the man himself.

'_Well, speak of the devil,' _I thought with a smirk.

…

**[Edward]**

I was initially a little surprised that it had taken Vitalia and Jasper so long to strike up a conversation. However, I was grateful for the opportunity to hear what she was freely thinking to herself during the silence.

I felt very amused at first – in reaction to her rain cloud analogy especially – but then, as I acknowledged her excitement through Jasper at the prospect of getting to know me, I felt uncertain and also somewhat riveted by it. I marveled at just how _much _she was looking forward to it.

It would be a shame to disappoint her, as I really wasn't that interesting, but I consoled myself with the fact that she was bringing it upon herself. Then I heard as she also considered that I wasn't the sort to allow myself to have fun, that life was meant to be _enjoyed _and that it was just sad when it wasn't.

_'She just doesn't have any idea_,' I considered silently. Perhaps it was true in most _human_ cases, but not for vampires. The same rules did not apply to us. Her philosophy was entirely misguided when directed to me and my kind.

I had to always stay in control, and I didn't really have much of an actual _life_. Well, aside from Bella. She _was _my life. She helped me feel at least _partially_ alive.

Then I watched as Vitalia looked to Jasper. She was considering how strange he was, and she instantly noticed that he seemed rather strained. Her observations were astoundingly accurate, while also entirely inadvertent. It was just an immediate, subconscious bit of knowledge she received.

She questioned why he was there, constantly curious and wondering as she was, but also registered that he was, indeed, dangerous. Just like me. At least she could recognize _that_, despite the fact it didn't in any way deter her.

Jasper looked over, and I could see and hear the recognition from her. She knew he was one of my relatives when she saw the color of his eyes. She decided to try and allow him to have the first word. It was a rather amusing turn of events, and I wondered if Jasper really would say anything. I wouldn't put it past him to remain silent.

My brother was in a debate of sorts with himself, I noticed, as he weighed whether or not to say something to her about the cigarette. It bothered him that she was smoking it, and also that his own, initial reaction had been relief when he had seen her light it up.

It helped with the scent of her blood. However, he was feeling guilty for that thought, and the urge to say something to make up for it was increasing. And, alas, after she smiled encouragingly, he did.

I was a little surprised actually. Jasper avoided human interaction like the plague. He just didn't really trust himself. However, I suppose his inner battle was too great for him to ignore. He felt obligated to attempt cautioning her.

However, Vitalia paid no mind to that, as if his words_ hadn't_ been preceded with a great deal of turmoil, and she instead remarked upon his accent. So, she had remembered what I said, huh? I smirked slightly at the thought.

The two continued in their exchange and as I listened I observed as Jasper slowly started to relax. It was very gradual, but the energy Vitalia was providing for him, that high spirited nature of hers, was helping my brother to react favorably to her presence. It was considerably easier for him to be around happier people. He could share in that feeling.

It was remarkable to witness Jasper conversing with anyone like this, as he hardly even did so amongst his own family. Alice was the single exception to that. But…then, was _I_ much different? I was starting to see that, perhaps, it simply had to do with who Vitalia was. The vitality of her. To us vampires, members of the living dead, such a grand representation of life was a rather compelling thing.

I listened very intently to them both.

With a slight shake of my head, I allowed Jasper's flaunt to slide, his mind openly gloating over the fact that Vitalia had tricked me during our race. He was about as competitive as I was.

They continued, and Jasper opened up a little further as he and Vitalia began talking over Texas. I saw images of the place within each of their minds, and I explored those images briefly. I had never actually been there, but it did seem a very thriving environment, which was perfectly fitting for the girl.

I continued to feel more surprised the more Jasper openly discussed his homeland with her. The memories were both pleasant and painful for him. His experience with Maria had tainted his recollections of it. However, he invited it all, his desire to speak of it overruling his discomfort. I realized then that maybe Jasper was more sentimentally attached to his human home than any of the rest of us.

And I'd just never seen him open up with anyone like this aside from Alice. Vitalia seemed to notice how sensitive the subject was for him as I saw her actively seeking a way to help him discuss it all comfortably. Through my brother too, and his musings over the feelings he was continuing to receive from her, I could see that she was really admiring the vulnerability he was presenting.

She appreciated emotional openness.

I was discovering so much more about her. The fact that she was from South Carolina, for example. I suppose the only downside to all of this was the fact that I would have to ask her all of this again. It seemed she had no problem being absolutely open about herself with whomever she spoke.

I decided I really had to arrange a time where she and I could speak face to face more extensively. Jasper had already managed to learn a great deal about her, more than I had managed to ascertain anyway.

The two of them shifted back into more amusing territory then, my brother's reactions to her antics highly entertaining to both myself and Vitalia. I supposed, despite the fact that he'd managed to obtain facts from her that I hadn't, I did already know more about her personality.

Everything she was thinking and saying was so very typical of her. Even though she_ did_ somehow manage to still surprise me. It was a rare thing with human beings. Due to being privy to their thoughts, I usually managed to have them all figured out in no time at all. However, with her, I was just left with more questions.

Jasper told her of Alice and I heard her inner remark over how sweet my brother looked when speaking of her. Then she mentioned a previous relationship of her own.

Why did _that_ surprise me? It was more or less the norm for a girl her age to have had some dating experience behind her. Why was I even dwelling on it?

An image of the boy in question came to me through her thoughts, but it was very brief, as she pushed it from her mind almost as soon as it came. It was obviously something that bothered her.

And that made me more than a little curious.

Then Jasper's thoughts took an interesting turn, and I found I could definitely relate to them.

'_She's a very…different sort of person,' _he was thinking to himself. _'I don't know why it's so easy to talk to her.' _

I saw myself within Vitalia's thoughts as she considered the way I would sometimes look at her in comparison to the look she was currently receiving from Jasper. It took me by surprise a moment too, the look I saw reflected from my own gaze. Undeniable fascination. It was when she had shown me the flower. I recalled how intrigued I had been by her in that moment.

That's when I had first realized that I wanted to get to know her. I wanted to learn from her. It served as a very vivid reminder to me. A small smile crossed my face. I couldn't believe I had considered giving up that pursuit.

Vitalia's mind returned to Texas, and she sifted through a few different ideas for my brother before she surprised us both with her suggestion. Was she seriously asking him to _dance _with her?

All ease from Jasper was replaced with discomfort then, and he understandably began to feel very concerned. There was no doubt in my mind that he would refuse her offer. He knew better than to take that much of a risk with a human.

But, not unlike her father, Vitalia was insistent.

And, at last, it was revealed to me that she_ did_ feel fear. She felt uneasy within our presence, and most especially within Jasper's. However, predictably, she didn't shy away from it. She embraced it still and continued her foolish presumption that there was any amount of good in us.

However, I furrowed my brows as Jasper's thoughts shifted a little. Instead of complete denial and uncertainty, he actually began _considering_ her offer. Something about her confident assurance apparently made him feel he could trust himself.

'_It…might be alright. Edward and the others do this all the time. She knows I could be dangerous, I feel how nervous she is, but I also feel that she's very sure of herself. I think…I think it could be okay.' _

He tested it and I had to resist releasing a frustrated growl of protest. Jasper couldn't be _that_ stupid, could he? Surely not. I readied myself to intervene if I had to, once again tensed in preparation.

And Jasper continued forward, deciding that the scent of her blood really wasn't much different with proximity. In fact, he even remarked to himself that it was a calm sort of scent. Even…subduing. Had I not noticed that myself?

Needless to say, Jasper obviously didn't have much self-control in any area of his life. I felt very irritated with his irresponsibility and very nearly strode right out there to order him to come inside with me instead.

But…_Vitalia_. She was so very accepting. He made a remark that most anyone else would have questioned, but which she simply took in stride. She definitely recognized that there was something different about our family too, but that only increased her fascination with us.

Was it…_really_ right for me to indulge that?

No. I had arrived at a decision already. I couldn't keep going back and forth like this.

Then, somehow, she knew exactly what to say to make Jasper feel more at ease. I marveled at that. I saw an image of her parents from within her mind, of the way they would look at each other, as she compared it to the look Jasper was now offering. The love in that one look, in both Jasper and her father's eyes, was incredible. I'd always considered how special a relationship Jasper and Alice shared, and had never seen its equal, but the memory Vitalia was exhibiting of her parents came incredibly close.

They started their dancing soon after, and…I found my reaction to the scene to be very strange. And unexpected. My irritation faded considerably, as I again relaxed my posture.

It was touching.

My brother was hardly feeling any struggle, and the excitement at his achievement with the human girl was extraordinary.

'_I…maybe I have more control than I thought. And Alice really would like this dancin'. It's too bad I still might have to think of somethin' else. She'll see this for sure. But…if she does see, I hope she's real proud of me.'_

I was very moved by it, and found myself inhaling deeply in wonder at the scene. How did that girl manage it? What was it about her, _exactly_? I couldn't seem to find the answer to that.

I was roused slightly when they began discussing me. Jasper was more confused than anything, and he definitely had a right to be. I was equally as confused, if not more so. He was wondering why I was taking an interest in her.

Vitalia's comeback to his question brought a smile back to my face though, and it widened even at how ridiculous her next words were. She considered _me_ to be the most interesting person she'd ever met? It was almost humorous how wrong she was about that. A fact she was soon to discover.

There wasn't much, after all, that I would be able to share.

And…yes, by the end of the summer, she would be leaving. At least she was used to it, as she said.

When she brought up family, I could hear how appreciative Jasper was of all of us, and I was again somewhat touched by that. He was always so closed off when it came to what he was really feeling. This was…such a rare thing.

His thoughts definitely didn't contain everything, and nor did Vitalia's.

But…family being the most important? I had to disagree there. For my part. Nothing…_nothing_ was more important to Bella to me. Of course, Jasper considered Alice family, but the level of importance he felt for each of us was considerable as well.

I definitely valued my family. Of course I did. I cared for them a great deal. I loved them. But…it staggered me a little as I read my brother's thoughts on the matter. Alice…seemed as if she was his whole world. I thought I could relate to that. To find that it wasn't exactly the case was…jarring. Was I…_wrong_ not to be placing more of an emphasis on my family?

Jasper was considering a great many things then in his own head. He was observing Vitalia very closely, analyzing and considering her success in dealing with me.

And he was very confident in his conclusion.

'_Yeah…Edward could use a positive influence in his life. He worries me sometimes. We...don't hardly see him much anymore, so maybe this little lady can help. There's somethin' about her. Somethin' real special. It's a little like what Alice has. And Emmett. They're all real positive people. Nothin' really brings them down.'_

My eyes opened, and I stared straight ahead, unseeing but sent into some deep thinking. I glanced over, saw that Carlisle was still working on the blood panel – from his thoughts, I gathered that he merely assumed I was patiently waiting for him to finish – and then continued in my reverie.

Everything began merging together, everything I had heard. Carlisle…and Emmett. They're hidden thoughts. Had they been…thinking the same thing? That Vitalia could…_help _me? Unlike them though, perhaps Jasper was not so uncertain of his own conclusions. He openly revealed his thoughts on the matter, knowing I could hear him.

Knowing I would start pondering it.

Carlisle was very cautious about what he was thinking around me, and Emmett...well, he wasn't much a thinker in general. However, like me, Jasper contemplated just about everything, but with a great deal more decisiveness. He was more daring than I was. He wasn't afraid to take risks. Such as with Vitalia, and with thinking the things he was.

However, none of them knew the reason for my negative behavior. They didn't know that I was considering _leaving_ Bella. That, for the sake of honoring my love for her, I was going to sever my ties with her completely. If they knew…maybe they would understand. But I couldn't tell them. I couldn't tell anyone. If I did, they would try and talk me out of it, and I was already doing enough of that from within my own mind.

I didn't need help. There was nothing that could fix the inevitable. No amount of positive influence could help with that dread of leaving the very center of my universe behind. All I wanted to do was _understand _Vitalia, her way of thinking. To observe and study her very strange behavior. That was all. And then, like she said, the summer would end and we would go our separate ways. My hell would officially begin.

I closed my eyes determinedly.

_'Sorry, Jasper and everyone else. I don't think her influence will make much of a difference.' _They meant well, and I appreciated that, but they didn't understand.

And it was definitely doubtful that Vitalia would ever officially meet my entire family at once. Well, unless it was somewhere public, but the probability of us all being out together during the summer was very slim. At least Jasper was honest with her.

She remarked on his honesty and then, of_ course,_ revealed that she knew I was hiding some things. Her perception really was very unnerving at times. However, I was pleased to discover that she did enjoy my teasing. It was something I enjoyed too, and I considered that it would be a bit of a shame if it only served to aggravate her.

Her parents pulled up a moment later, and she enthusiastically said her goodbye to my brother, who was completely comfortable in returning the favor, before I watched – through his eyes – as she greeted her family.

I saw her father step out and pass by Jasper, and then I focused entirely on Vitalia herself.

She was currently doubting my word. It brought a smirk to my place and I decided to proceed with the teasing and send a rather expertly timed response.

'_Well, speak of the devil,' _She thought to herself.

If only she knew how accurate a statement that was.

**Edward: **You're right. I wasn't sleeping last night. I had to keep up my ritualistic vigil. Also, if you're really determined to take on the challenge of attempting to get me to open up about my uninteresting self, then I invite you try ;)

* * *

><p><em>To be continued…<em>


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